Morris opens up Arkansas’ playbook with Luginbill
McEwen homers in series-opening loss at LSU
The host Tigers came away with the win on a walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh.
With the setback, the Razorbacks are 37-12 overall with a 12-10 mark in SEC play.
Up Next
Game two of the weekend series between Arkansas and LSU is scheduled for Saturday at 6 p.m. and will be streamed live on the SEC Network+ through the WatchESPN app.
Sunday’s series finale will be televised on ESPNU at 3 p.m.
After the home team scored an early run, the Razorbacks put together a scoring threat of their own in the top of the second.
With runners on first and second, senior Loren Krzysko laid down a sacrifice bunt to move them both into scoring position.
Fellow senior Tori Cooper drew a walk of her own to load the bases with one out but LSU (38-13, 11-10 SEC) worked its way out of the jam without allowing a run.
The home team put runners in scoring position in the third and fourth innings but each time freshman Mary Haff worked her way out of trouble.
In the fourth, she tallied a pair of strikeouts including one with the bases loaded to end the inning.
With five strikeouts in the game, Haff pushed her season total to 216 which is three behind Katy Henry (2006) for third place on the program’s single-season list.
McEwen led off the next half inning with a solo shot to right center to tie the game.
The freshman took the 3-1 offering from LSU starter Allie Walljasper and deposited it into the bleachers for her team-leading 11th home run of the season.
The home run was her fifth since moving to the lead-off spot April 10 at Saint Louis.
Despite both teams putting runners on in each of their times at the plate, the game was tied at 1-all heading to the seventh.
To lead off the frame, McEwen laced a potential extra-base hit headed down the line in right field but was retired on a nice jumping snag at first.
With one down, Autumn Buczek stood on second after an errant throw to first but she was left stranded at third to end the scoring chance.
Personal bests spotlight Hogs in final meet of regular season
FAYETTEVILLE — The outdoor regular season came to an end at John McDonnell Field as Arkansas set multiple personal records as they prep to head to Knoxville for the SEC Outdoor Championships next weekend.
The Razorbacks placed eight in the top-eight spots in the 100-meter dash, as Jada Baylark was able to secure her first wind-legal time since the Texas Relays, finishing first with a time of 11.40.
Baylark tied the school record in the season opener with a time of 11.10.
In the 400-meter run, Morgan Burks Magee set a personal best time of 23.81.
Arkansas set three additional personal bests in running events, as Alex Ritchey finished the 1,500-meter run in 4:37.46, Sydney Hammit ended the 400 meters in 55.00 and Payton Brown finished fifth in the 3,000-meters at 10:30.05.
All four runners finished in the top-10 in their respective races.
In the field events, Riley Hoogerwerf finished third in the discus throw with a distance of 39.09m (128′-3″), while Genna Potter cleared 3.54m (11′-7.25″) in the pole vault, each setting a new personal record in their respective events.
“Carina drastically ran better,” said coach Lance Harter on Carina Viljoen’s run in Stanford yesterday. “She’s knocking on the door repetitively and usually when you run with that consistently you’re prepped for a big drop in time at the NCAA meet.
“She ran against the big girls and that was really good for her. We’re heading in the right direction.”
Viljoen finished eighth in the 1,500-meters.
Arkansas Twilight
John McDonnell Field
May 4, 2018
Women’s Pole Vault
4. Morgan Hartsell – 3.74m (12′-3.25″)
9. Madeline Telford – 3.54m (11′-7.25″)
10. Genna Potter – 3.54m (11′-7.25″) PR
Women’s 1500-meters
5. Alex Ritchey – 4:37.46 PR
9. Greta Taylor – 4:47.39
16. Kristen Larkan – 4:59.29
Women’s 800-meters
7. Kailee Sawyer – 2:13.13
10. Micah Huckabee – 2:14.88
13. Tess Iler – 2:18.59
Women’s 200-meters
4. Morgan Burks Magee – 23.81 PR
9. Sydney Davis – 24.87
11. Tamara Kuykendall – 24.89
Women’s 400-meters
7. Sydney Hammit – 55.00 PR
Women’s 100 M
1. Jada Baylark – 11.40
2. Kiara Parker – 11.48
3. Janeek Brown – 11.50
5. Morgan Burks MaGee – 11.69
8. Tamara Kuykendall – 11.7
Women’s 3000 M
5. Payton Brown – 10:30.05 PR
6. Grace Taylor – 10:51.54
Women’s Discus Throw
3. Riley Hoogerwerf – 39.09m (128′-3″) PR
Payton Jordan Invite
Stanford, California
May 3, 2018
Women’s 1,500-meters
8. Carina Viljoen – 4:16.19
Up Next
Arkansas will travel to Knoxville, Tenn., next weekend for the SEC Outdoor Championships. The meet will begin on Friday and conclude on Sunday.
The Razorbacks will be vying for their 13th-consecutive Southeastern Conference Cross Country or Track & Field Championship.
Record throws highlight Hogs’ regular season finale
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas concluded its 2018 regular season outdoor campaign in John McDonnell Field hosting the Arkansas Twilight that featured a few outstanding performances.
“We put together a great home finale meet today at John McDonnell,” said coach Chris Bucknam. “Obviously not everyone on our roster competed today, but the ones that did competed well.
“We’ll take the weekend to piece together our entries for the SEC meet next weekend and prepare ourselves for the three day battle in Knoxville.”
It was a record day for throws at John McDonnell Field, as Erich Sullins rewrote his school record mark in the hammer throw by more than four feet, recording a distance of 63.71m (209′-0″) in the event.
Sullins proceeded to set a new personal best in the discus as well, finishing with a mark of 48.18m (158′-1″).
Alex Springer moved up to No. 8 all-time among Razorbacks in the javelin, throwing a season-best 65.92m (216′-3″).
Overall, seven personal-bests were recorded including Sullins’ school record in the weight throw.
Arkansas Twilight
John McDonnell Field
May 4, 2018
Men’s Long Jump
3. Trae Carey – 6.95m (22′-9.75″)
Men’s Shot Put
2. Jeff Rogers – 17.47m (57′-3.75″)
3. Sam Kempka – 16.89m (55′-5″)
Men’s Pole Vault
5. Gabe Moore – 4.40m (14′-5.25″)
Men’s 1500-meters
15. Colin O’Mara – 3:54.98 – Personal Best
17. Graham Brown – 3:56.10 – Personal Best
Men’s 200-Meters
2. Obi Igbokwe – 20.73
5. Kristoffer Haris – 21.21
6. Kevin Harris – 21.35
Men’s 400-meters
3. Jamarco Stephen – 46.87
4. Hunter Woodhall – 47.42
Men’s 800-meters
2. Kieran Taylor – 1:50.65
3. Chase Pareti – 1:51.58 – Personal Best
6. Reese Walters – 1:52.45 – Personal Best
Men’s 400-meters
3. Jamarco Stephen – 46.87
4. Hunter Woodhall – 47.42 – Personal Best
Men’s Discus Throw
3. Erich Sullins – 48.18m (158′-1″)
Men’s Hammer Throw
1. Erich Sullins – 63.71m (209′-0″) – School Record
Men’s Javelin
2. Alex Springer – 65.92m (216′-3″) – Personal Best
4. Andrew Henn – 59.44m (195′-0″)
Up Next
Arkansas will travel to Knoxville, Tenn., next weekend for the SEC Outdoor Championships. The meet will begin on Friday, May 11 and conclude on Sunday, May 13.
Bruce posts third best NCAA time in 5k in California
STANFORD, Calif. — Senior Jack Bruce took a trip out to California with one goal, lay down a solid time in the 5,000-meters at the Payton Jordan Invite.
Bruce not only finished with a solid time in the event but cracked the top-10 in program history with his time of 13:28.57 finishing 14th-overall in a field full of quality opponents.
“That wasn’t a fool around race last night,” said coach Chris Bucknam. “The competition was outstanding; there were a lot of guys in that race. I didn’t count them all but it looked like there were over 25 entries. I’m just happy that Jack [Bruce] came out with a good result.
“He stuck his nose in there and ran very smart. His last 600-meters looked good, this is only his second real race this year, he opened up with a 3:39 [1,500-meters] and now he’s run 13:28 the seventh-fastest time in program history.
“I think he’s in a really good spot, I don’t think he played all his cards, he ran extremely smart by not going out too fast and getting caught up in the pace. His performance was well worth the trip.
“I’m proud of him and now it’s on to the conference meet.”
Bruce’s time is not only the No. 7 time in program history but is currently No. 3 in the NCAA and No. 1 in the SEC.
Yes, position matters and is one of details Morris will fix
The question came about on ESPN Arkansas’ The Morning Rush this week:
The Morning Rush on Twitter
What are the odds that there is actually a lot of talent on his football team but guys weren’t put in position to have success?
The simple answer is extremely high and it’s in the details.
That was my initial opinion after watching the first couple of fall practices we were allowed to see. It was strengthened with what we saw in games and confirmed by former assistant coaches who were out of a job by December.
Part of it was Bret Bielema simply being stubborn. He’s not a complete idiot, despite what some of the Great Unwashed say now. He was going to build at Arkansas what they had at Wisconsin.
He was completely wrong. That was never going to work at Arkansas. Bielema’s former boss, Barry Alvarez, basically said that in early September at the Little Rock Touchdown Club:
“If I were coaching in the southwest or the southeast where I had access to a lot of skill players I’d probably run some things different than I do at Wisconsin.”
He likely would have told Bielema that back in December 2012 when Jeff Long finally answered the love letter he got from Bret after letting Bobby Petrino go earlier that year.
The only problem was Bret learned a great deal of what he wanted to know from Alvarez, but he didn’t learn everything Alvarez knew. That was the root problem all along.
As a result, Bielema discovered that in the South nobody coached a system like he wanted to install. He was taking players to perform at an SEC championship level and having to go 180 degrees with them.
That was never going to work.
But the feeling here is it will work in Chad Morris’ system.
Part of it is Morris’ background, part of it is the talent on the Razorbacks isn’t that bad. Yes, I know they were 4-8 last year, but that record should have been at least 7-5 because it was just bad coaching that lost the TCU, Mississippi State and Missouri games.
Starting with the Rutgers loss in Bielema’s first season back in 2013, his teams had a nasty habit of falling short in the second half. It appeared they simply weren’t conditioned correctly … they might be able to lift a lot of weight, but couldn’t run fast enough to get to it in the second half.
Morris was a mathematics major with a statistics minor. He looks at things, well, differently than a lot of coaches. It’s a nerdy approach, for lack of a better definition.
It’s why he runs the offense he does. It’s all about the numbers and he amazes his assistants with some of the things he comes up with. How the angles on plays can be just an inch or so off and affect the play.
John Chavis is the same way on the defensive side of things. That’s a big part of the players changing positions. It’s part of what makes me think the defense is going to be significantly better.
The last three seasons, we kept hearing how “close” the Razorbacks were. They could never really close the gap.
Many chalked it up to a lack of talent. I said it was a matter of getting some pretty good players and then making them run around with 10-20 extra pounds and expecting them to live up to their potential.
You could call it “coaching them down.” That’s what Bielema and his staff appeared to do at times. They might have been bigger and stronger, but they couldn’t run enough in the fourth quarter to win games.
Count the number of games the Hogs lost in the second half over the last five years.
The question asked is a good one. Yes, there likely were players in the wrong positions. Former assistants said Bielema over-ruled some of their moves they wanted to make. Being conditioned for strength as opposed to stamina magnified the problem.
Let’s face it, if you’re playing a new position and you’re a half-step slower because of the extra 10 pounds of muscle you’re packing, then you have a problem.
Bielema was more a big picture type coach.
Morris is about the details.
Don’t misunderstand anything. It’s too much of a longshot to start booking tickets to Atlanta in December for the SEC Championship Game.
But they will be improved.
And the record will be better than most think.
Hogs look to take control of West in Baton Rouge
BATON ROUGE, La. — With just three weeks remaining in the 2018 regular season, Arkansas heads to Baton Rouge this weekend to play an important three-game series with LSU at Alex Box Stadium starting on Friday.
Arkansas (32-13, 13-8 SEC) currently sits atop the SEC West with a one-game lead over Ole Miss and a two-game lead over Texas A&M.
A series win over the Tigers would keep the Hogs in the driver’s seat for a division crown as the season enters its final month and it will also be their first series win over LSU in Baton Rouge since 2004.
The Razorbacks enter the weekend on a four-game winning streak after taking out No. 4 Texas Tech during the midweek and then sweeping the Alabama Crimson Tide, their third conference series sweep of the year.
Against the Red Raiders, the Arkansas pitching staff struck out 17 batters, a single-game high, 10 coming from junior reliever Barrett Loseke.
Loseke had a career week, en route to earning NCBWA National Pitcher of the Week and SEC Pitcher of the Week honors.
He pitched 8.1 scoreless innings combined over three separate appearances and earned one victory with two saves.
Of those 8.1 innings, 4.2 came against Texas Tech where he closed the game out, retiring 13-consecutive batters.
The Razorback offense has also been hot as of late, most notably sophomore Dominic Fletcher. Fletcher finished the month of April with a stellar .448 batting average and is now hitting .305 after hitting under .200 through the first month of the year.
Five of Fletcher’s last six games have been multi-hit performances and he has hit two home runs in his last three games to up his season total to six for the year.
FOLLOW LIVE
Friday and Sunday’s games will be available online only via SEC Network+ on WatchESPN.com and the Watch ESPN app.
Saturday’s second game of the series can be seen on the SEC Network with Clay Matvick (PxP) and Ben McDonald (Analyst) on the call.
Phil Elson will call all three games on the radio for the Razorback Sports Network from IMG. That radio broadcasts are also available on the Razorback Gameday app.
IMPORTANT LINKS (ALL TIMES CENTRAL)
Fri, May 4 – Arkansas vs. LSU – 7 p.m. – LIVE STATS | WATCH (SECN+)
Sat, May 5 – Arkansas vs. LSU – 7 p.m. – LIVE STATS | WATCH (SEC Network)
Sun, May 6 – Arkansas vs. LSU – 2 p.m. – LIVE STATS | WATCH (SECN+)
PROBABLE STARTERS
FRI: ARK RHP Blaine Knight (7-0, 2.45 ERA, 63 SO, 15 BB) vs. LSU RHP Zack Hess (6-4, 3.92 ERA, 77 SO, 31 BB)
SAT: ARK LHP Kacey Murphy (5-3, 2.54 ERA, 53 SO, 8 BB) vs. LSU RHP Ma’Khail Hilliard (8-3, 2.89 ERA, 54 SO, 19 BB)
SUN: ARK TBA vs. LSU TBA
RAZORBACK PRIME 9
• Arkansas will look to break a five-game road-losing streak when it travels to Baton Rouge to take on the LSU Tigers for a three-game set starting on Friday at Alex Box Stadium.
• The Razorbacks are coming off their third conference series sweep of the season after dispatching Alabama. It’s the first time since 2010 that the Hogs have swept three or more conference series in the same year.
• Arkansas pitcher Blaine Knight became the 13th Razorback in school history to strike out 200 or more batters in a career when he struck out Cobie Vance of Alabama last week in the first inning.
• Two wins over LSU this weekend would mark the first series win for the Razorbacks over the Tigers since 2011. It would also be the first series win in Baton Rouge since 2004.
• Heston Kjerstad (.368, 9 HR) and Casey Martin (.336, 10 HR) are the only Division I freshmen with a .330 average or higher and nine or more home runs.
• Kacey Murphy matched his career-high in strikeouts last week against Alabama, even while only working five innings. He also has the second-lowest strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.6) in the SEC.
• The Razorbacks are currently the best hitting team in the SEC with a .310 combined batting average and also leads the SEC in hits (476), RBIs (307), and total bases (771). The 69 home runs is 13 ahead of last year’s pace.
• Junior pitcher Barrett Loseke was named the SEC and NCBWA National Pitcher of the Week after his flawless week with a combined 8.1 scoreless innings and 17 strikeouts, 10 coming against Texas Tech.
• After hitting just .190 in his first 17 games of the season, sophomore Dominic Fletcher has had the hot bat, hitting .370 in SEC games (seventh-highest among SEC hitters), including .389 over his last 10 games overall.
Razorbacks close out regular season on road at LSU
BATON ROUGE, La. — Arkansas closes its 2018 regular season with a road trip to take on 13th-ranked LSU.
The three-game series begins Friday with first pitch scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Tiger Park.
In addition to being streamed online, game one will be part of the Bases Loaded coverage on the SEC Network. This weekend marks the program’s first trip to Baton Rouge since the 2015 season.
No. 16/15 Arkansas (37-11/12-9 SEC) at No. 13/14 LSU (37-13/10-10 SEC) | Game Notes
Tiger Park (Baton Rouge, La.)
Game 1: Friday, May 4 at 6:30 p.m. – SEC Network+ | Live Stats
Game 2: Saturday, May 5 at 6 p.m. – SEC Network+ | Live Stats
Game 3: Sunday, May 6 at 3 p.m. – ESPNU | Live Stats
All-Time Series vs LSU
Friday’s opener will be the 66th meeting in the series and the 30th game played in Baton Rouge.
The Razorbacks are looking for their first win in the series since 2013 and first on the road since 2005. This weekend’s series will be the first with both teams ranked inside the top 20.
Last Time Out
Arkansas completed its second SEC sweep of the year with a 7-1 win over Ole Miss. The Razorbacks scored four in the fifth inning to break the game open.
The win clinched the program’s first sweep of Ole Miss since the 2001 season.
Rankings Watch
The Razorbacks are up one spot to a program-best No. 15 in this week’s ESPN.com/USA Softball poll while remaining at No. 16 in the USA Today/NFCA rankings.
The team sits at No. 18 in the RPI for the second-straight week.
A Look at the Stat Sheet
The Razorbacks carry top-50 national marks in strikeout to walk ratio (seventh/5.08), home runs (T23/50), team ERA (27/2.05), slugging percentage (31/.467) and runs per game (T48/5.29).
That’s a Record
With a sixth-inning single against Ole Miss (April 30), Hannah McEwen broke the program’s single-season RBI record and enters the weekend with 51 RBI.
She sits fourth in the SEC and tied for 26th in the NCAA in RBI. After hitting .636 with two home runs, seven RBI and four runs against Ole Miss, McEwen was named the SEC Freshman of the Week.
Single-Season RBI Leaders
1. 51 – Hannah McEwen (2018)
2. 50 – Sandra Smith (2010)
3. 49 – Nicole Schroeder (2017)
4. 47 – Miranda Dixon (2008)
5. 46 – Kasey Fagan (2014)
An Eye on 200
Freshman Mary Haff became the fourth Arkansas pitcher to register 200 strikeouts in a season with six strikeouts in the series opener against Ole Miss (April 28).
She is second in the SEC and tied for 18th nationally with 211 strikeouts which stands as the fourth-highest total by an Arkansas pitcher and the program’s freshman-class record.
Single-Season Strikeouts Leaders
1. 305 – Heather Schlichtman (2004)
2. 224 – Katy Henry (2007)
3. 219 – Katy Henry (2006)
4. 211 – Mary Haff (2018)
5. 203 – Heather Schlichtman (2001)
Be at Bogle
The Razorbacks beat Ole Miss (April 28) in front of a record crowd of 3,448 fans at Bogle Park.
Game two of the series was played in front of 1,401 fans which stands as the No. 6 home-attendance figure in program history.
Arkansas tallied a 24-2 record in home games during the 2018 season.
One-Hit Wonder
Freshman Mary Haff’s complete-game performance versus Ole Miss (April 28) doubled as her sixth one-hit effort of the season, and second in SEC play.
The game also marked her ninth complete-game shutout of the year.
One Thru Nine
Arkansas is fourth in the SEC and tied for 23rd nationally with 50 home runs.
With Hannah McEwen’s two-home run outing at Saint Louis (April 10), the team has hit a home run from each spot in the lineup.
Salazar picks up first team All-SEC honors for second time
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Arkansas senior Jose Salazar picked up First Team All-SEC honors from the league office on Thursday.
It marks the second straight year that Salazar has earned first team conference honors, after being named to the second team 2016.
Salazar becomes just the second Razorback (Mike Redlicki – 2016 and 2017) to earn first team honors back-to-back years since Oskar Johansson in 2000 and 2001.
Earning an at-large selection to compete in the 2018 NCAA Division I Men’s Singles Tennis Championships, Salazar enters postseason with a career mark of 86-30 (.741) in singles, the third-best career winning percentage in school history.
This season, Salazar is 24-10 overall, including an 18-6 mark in dual matches this spring. Salazar is 9-4 against ranked opponents, winning seven of his last eight against ranked foes. Overall, he has won nine of his last 10 matches.
Razorbacks collect all-conference awards from league Thursday
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas collected some hardware this week with players and coach Shauna Taylor earning All-SEC honors the league office announced Thursday.
In addition to the team title, Arkansas earned three major individual awards including SEC Coach of the Year, SEC Player of the Year and SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
SEC Honors (Arkansas)
SEC Coach of the Year: Shauna Taylor
SEC Player of the Year: Maria Fassi
First-Team All-SEC: Maria Fassi, Dylan Kim, Alana Uriell
SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Dylan Kim
SEC Women’s Golf Community Service Team: Cara Gorlei
Taylor and the Razorbacks won the program’s first SEC title in Birmingham, Alabama, two weeks ago and are enjoying a record-setting year.
Taylor’s selection as coach of the year is her second (2014) in five seasons.
Fassi picked up SEC Player of the Year honors joining former Razorback Stacy Lewis as the only student-athletes in program history to earn the award.
Fassi also earned her third all-conference honor with her first-team selection this season.
Junior Dylan Kim and senior Alana Uriell join Fassi as First-Team All-SEC selections.
It is Kim’s second All-SEC honor after the Plano, Texas, native earned SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors which were announced at the conference championship.
Uriell moves up to the first-team this year after a second-team selection as a junior.
The Razorbacks earned the No. 1 seed in the Austin (Texas) NCAA Regional.
The three-day event takes place at the University of Texas Golf Course May 7-9, with the top six teams from the four NCAA Regional sites advancing to the NCAA Championship May 18-23.
