Going into their backgrounds with Smith coming from Howard, Russell’s new leaners look and Collins on defense’s development in spring.
Arkansas faces Georgia in series decider after Friday’s 5-3 loss
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — It wasn’t the Friday night the Hogs had in mind.
No. 16 Arkansas fell to No. 5 Georgia 5-3 in front of a packed Baum-Walker Stadium crowd on April 17, dropping Game Two of the SEC weekend series.
The Razorbacks now sit at 26-14 overall and 9-8 in conference play. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, improved to 31-9 and a strong 12-5 in the SEC, one of the best records in the league.
The loss evens the series at one game apiece. The two teams will settle it Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. on SEC Network+ with Josh Haley handling play-by-play and Troy Eklund in the analyst chair.
Georgia jumped out fast and never really let Arkansas breathe through the first half of the game.
The Bulldogs tagged starter Cole Gibler for a solo home run in the second inning and then piled on with two more two-out runs in the third.
By the time the sixth inning arrived, a Georgia double extended the lead to 4-0 and put the Razorbacks in a significant hole.
Gibler, making just his second career start on the mound, worked five innings for Arkansas.
The left-hander tallied two strikeouts but gave up four runs before turning the ball over to the bullpen.
It wasn’t the outing the Hogs needed from a young arm in a big SEC matchup.
The Razorbacks didn’t go quietly, though.
Arkansas fights back with power in sixth
Damian Ruiz changed the energy inside Baum-Walker Stadium with one swing.
The infielder launched a two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth to cut the Georgia lead to 4-2, giving the home crowd something to cheer about and putting the Hogs back in the conversation.
But Georgia answered.
The Bulldogs added a solo shot of their own in the seventh to push their lead back to three at 5-2.
Arkansas scratched back once more in the bottom of the seventh, scoring a run on a wild pitch to make it 5-3. That would be the last time the Razorbacks pulled within two runs.
Georgia reliever Caden Aoki shut the door the rest of the way. He entered in place of starter Dylan Vigue, who left after two innings with an injury and four strikeouts to his credit.
Aoki went five innings, allowing three runs — two earned — while issuing five walks and punching out four batters on 105 pitches.
He did just enough to keep Arkansas from completing the comeback.
Out of the Arkansas bullpen, Tate McGuire delivered 2.2 innings of work with one run allowed and two strikeouts.
Steele Eaves followed with 1.1 innings and one strikeout of his own. Together, the two combined for four innings of one-run relief ball, a solid effort from the backend of the Razorbacks’ pitching staff that kept things competitive down the stretch.
Ruiz leads way offensively for Hogs
Zack Stewart was the only Razorback with multiple hits Friday, going 2-for-3 with a walk.
He’s been a consistent presence in the lineup throughout conference play.
Ruiz, meanwhile, continues to be Arkansas’ most productive bat in SEC games this season. He finished Friday 1-for-3 with a homer, two RBI, a walk and a stolen base.
Through 13 league games, he’s slashing .304/.418/.565 with three home runs and eight RBI, numbers that lead the team in conference play and make him one of the more dependable threats in the Razorbacks’ lineup.
It’s worth noting that Arkansas has won four straight weekend series against Georgia inside Baum-Walker Stadium, doing so in 2010, 2012, 2017 and 2021.
The Hogs haven’t lost a home series to the Bulldogs since the 2008 season. Sunday’s rubber match will determine whether that streak continues or comes to an end.
Game Three is set for 1 p.m. Sunday, April 18 on SEC Network+.
479 Equipment Ruscin & Zach podcast April 17
Baseball team is on fire
Acuff’s new shoes are now available.
Plus Gucci Row Greg steps into the firing line with the texters.
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Former Razorback quarterback and basketball player had a quick, simple answer when asked how he would have handled NIL then.
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Just because there’s no football and basketball doesn’t mean a lack of action for online gaming and some it is some surprising events.
Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: 4-17-26
Colton & Tommy hold down the fort while Tye is in Nashville for another wedding, Arkansas starts of the UGA series HOT with a 6-3 W, Bucket Lists, Spring Football, Fence Man Friday Picks, and more!
Van Horn’s Razorbacks ride six-game streak into SEC showdown with Georgia
There’s a reason Dave Van Horn has lasted as long as he has in Fayetteville.
When things get hard, when the losses start stacking up and the fan base starts grumbling, his teams have a habit of finding themselves.
Thursday night at Baum-Walker Stadium, in front of 10,320 fans who badly needed something to cheer about, the Arkansas Razorbacks gave Van Horn another chapter worth remembering.
The Hogs beat fifth-ranked Georgia 6-3. It’s their sixth win in a row.
Not long ago that kind of run felt like a long shot.
The man behind the streak
Van Horn didn’t have an easy hand to play heading into this week.
His team had stumbled through a losing skid that left Arkansas sitting in uncomfortable territory in the SEC standings.
He’d watched his ace left-hander Hunter Dietz throw more than 100 pitches in back-to-back weeks and now he needed him again on short rest. He had a top-five opponent coming into Fayetteville for the Hogs’ first home SEC series in 18 days.
Most coaches would’ve played it safe with Dietz.
Van Horn sent him back out there.
Dietz answered with 5 1/3 innings of two-run ball, striking out 6 and throwing 61 of 85 pitches for strikes before giving way to right-hander Gabe Gaeckle in the sixth.
That’s the kind of roster decision that separates coaches who manage rosters from coaches who know their players.
Fast start that set the tone
Van Horn’s teams tend to be aggressive and opportunistic and Thursday’s first inning was a perfect example of what that looks like when it works.
Georgia right-hander Joey Volchko walked Carter Rutenbar and Ryder Helfrick on just 10 pitches to open the game and both runners moved up on a wild pitch.
Camden Kozeal’s sacrifice fly to right scored Rutenbar. Damian Ruiz followed with an RBI double and then advanced on a passed ball.
When Volchko’s second wild pitch of the inning scored Ruiz the Razorbacks led 3-0 before Georgia had recorded a single out after that chaos settled.
Volchko threw 16 of his first 32 pitches out of the strike zone. Arkansas made him pay for every one of them. That’s not accident — that’s a Van Horn-coached lineup doing what it’s been trained to do.
Georgia got one back in the third when Ryan Wynn hit a leadoff homer to left to make it 3-1 and remind everyone the Bulldogs came in at 30-9 for a reason. But the Razorbacks answered in the fourth and it looked like a Van Horn special.
Execution when it counts
Ruiz led off the fourth with a single and Souza drew a walk.
Then the two pulled off a double steal to put runners in scoring position with nobody out — exactly the kind of aggressive, smart baserunning that defines what Van Horn wants from his offense.
Maika Niu’s sacrifice fly to right scored Ruiz and moved Souza to third.
Reese Robinett came through with a 2-out infield single to score Souza and push the lead to 5-1.
Volchko finished the night having allowed 5 runs on 5 hits with 4 walks and 8 strikeouts across his outing.
The runs were a season high. Arkansas had gotten to him early and never let him settle.
Bullpen management done right
When Dietz gave up a 340-foot leadoff homer to Daniel Jackson in the sixth to make it 5-2 and Rylan Lujo followed with a single Van Horn turned to Gaeckle.
It proved to be the right call. Gaeckle retired every batter he faced over the first 1 2/3 innings of his outing and threw just 24 pitches — efficient enough that he should be available again later in the series.
That’s the kind of bullpen management that wins SEC series.
Then came the freshman moment Van Horn has been waiting to see from Carter Rutenbar.
In the bottom of the seventh the freshman launched a 404-foot home run off the top of the video scoreboard in right-center field — his second career homer and his first in SEC play — to push the Hogs ahead 6-2.
Closer Ethan McElvain slams door shut
It wasn’t clean at the end. Closer Ethan McElvain walked a pair and had a wild pitch score a Georgia run in the eighth to cut the lead to 6-3.
He loaded the bases and briefly made Fayetteville nervous but got out of the jam when pinch hitter Cole Koniarsky grounded out to third on a 3-2 pitch.
McElvain came back for the ninth worked around a walk to Kolby Branch and got Tre Phelps to fly out to right with Branch stranded at third base.
It was McElvain’s third save of the season. He walked 2 and struck out 2 in 1 2/3 innings.
What Van Horn has built
Arkansas is now 26-13 overall and 9-7 in SEC play. The Bulldogs came in at 30-9 and 11-5 in conference and this was no soft opponent.
Beating them in a series opener in front of a packed Baum-Walker crowd is exactly what Van Horn needed from his team at exactly the right moment.
Six straight wins doesn’t erase a rough stretch overnight.
But it’s the kind of run that reminds everyone in Fayetteville that when Dave Van Horn’s teams find their footing they’re dangerous. Game 2 is Friday at 6 p.m. and the Hogs will be looking to make it seven.
479 Equipment Ruscin & Zach podcast April 16
We have thoughts on Taylen Green’s visit with Jon Gruden and why Ruscin needs people that care and are hungry.
Then we all settle in for a special edition of “cook Colton”
Brett Dolan previews Georgia series after quick trip to Ohio this week
After Razorbacks get surprising three straight wins on road at Alabama to get back on right track with better pitching.
