FAYETTEVILLE — It took some extra swings Tuesday night, but fifth-ranked Arkansas pulled out a 10-9 win over Lousiana-Monroe in 10 innings at Baum Stadium.

It was the its 20th win of the season for the Razorbacks.

The Hogs got some help in the 10th as Casey Martin scored the winning run on a bases-loaded error by ULM shortstop Joey Jordan.

Arkansas only needed two hits in the 10th, but one was a key RBI single from freshman Heston Kjerstad to tie the game. Kjerstad finished the game 3-for-6 with one RBI to extend his hitting streak to a team-best 13 games.

After the Warhawks (15-13, 4-5 Sun Belt) tied the game with a four-run ninth inning, making it 8-8, they took the lead in the top of the 10th by taking advantage of a leadoff walk followed by a sacrifice bunt, an infield single, and then a squeeze bunt by pinch hitter Brendan Jordan.

The bunt was placed perfectly in between the pitcher and the third base line to allow the run to score from third.

Arkansas (20-9, 5-4 SEC) roared right back with a two-run bottom of the 10th.

Eric Cole led off the frame with an infield single deep in the hole at short, his first hit of the night. The next batter, Casey Martin, grounded a ball back to ULM pitcher Keegan Curtis. As Curtis threw to second for the potential double play, his second baseman, Brian Barefoot, caught the ball with his foot off the bag. The umpire called Cole safe and Martin was safe at first as well.

The close play shifted the momentum in favor of the Razorbacks as they went on to get an RBI single from Heston Kjerstad, tying it at 9-9.

Two batters later, after Dominic Fletcher was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Jordan McFarland grounded to short, but the shortstop threw the ball over the catcher’s head as he tried to get the force out at home, allowing Martin to score the winning run.

Arkansas is now 4-5 this season in one-run games with all four victories coming against non-conference opponents.

The win is also coach Dave Van Horn’s 1,200th victory as a head coach across all divisions.

This season is Van Horn’s 24th season as a Division I head coach. He spent six seasons prior as the head coach at Texarkana Community College and Division II’s Central Missouri State.

The Hitting

Along with Kjerstad, Evan Lee and Carson Shaddy both turned in multi-hit games.

Lee, who was the leadoff batter as the designated hitter on Tuesday, hit his second homer of the season in the bottom of the sixth inning, to give Arkansas its first lead of the game at 6-4.

Lee finished with a team-high three RBIs in the game, which was also a season high and tied his career high.

Shaddy came away with a 2-for-3 performance at the plate, his third multi-hit game in his last five appearances.

The redshirt senior has been a tough out over the last three weeks, hitting .450 (18-for-40) over an 11-game stretch with 13 RBIs and just nine strikeouts.

The Pitching

Freshman Jackson Rutledge earned his first start of his young collegiate career Tuesday night and gave up three earned runs over three innings.

Juniors Jake Reindl and Barrett Loseke shut down the ULM offense from the fourth through the eighth innings, allowing no runs on just three hits, combined, and eight strikeouts.

Reindl was in line for the victory before ULM scored four in the top of the ninth to send it to extras.

Lee, in true two-way player fashion, came in to get the final two outs in the top of the 10th to keep it tied, allowing him to earn his second victory of the year.

Up Next

The Razorbacks and Warhawks are back on the field on Wednesday to close out their two-game series starting at 3 p.m. at Baum Stadium. The game will be televised online on SEC Network+.

FAYETTEVILLE — After one of its longest roadtrips in recent seasons, No. 5 Arkansas returns home for 15 of their next 18 games, starting with a two-game midweek series with Louisiana-Monroe beginning on Tuesday.

First pitch with the Warhawks is set for 6:30 p.m. at Baum Stadium and the series will continue on Wednesday at 3 p.m.

FOLLOW LIVE

Both games will be streamed via SEC Network+, the online-only arm of the SEC Network on WatchESPN.com and the Watch ESPN app. Brett Dolan (play-by-play) and Troy Eklund (Analyst) will have the call for both games.

Phil Elson will call all three games on the radio for the Razorback Sports Network from IMG and he’ll be joined by former Razorback Bubba Carpenter.

The radio broadcasts are also available on the Razorback Gameday app.

IMPORTANT LINKS (ALL TIMES CENTRAL)
Tue, April 3 – Arkansas vs. ULM – 6:30 p.m. – LIVE STATS | WATCH
Wed, April 4 – Arkansas vs. ULM – 3 p.m. – LIVE STATS | WATCH

PROBABLE STARTERS
TUE: ARK RHP Jackson Rutledge (0.00 ERA, 2-0, 8 K, 6 BB) vs. ULM RHP Stephen Morrison (3.77 ERA, 2-0, 7 K, 6 BB)

WED: ARK TBA vs. ULM TBA

For the last eight games and roughly two weeks, Arkansas had to play away from Baum Stadium, including weekend series at No. 2 Florida and, most recently, No. 4 Ole Miss.

Now, the Hogs get to return to the friendly confines of their home field, a place where they’ve thrived.

Arkansas has built up a 14-2 record in series wins over Bucknell, Dayton, USC, Kent State, Texas, and, most recently, No. 4 Kentucky at Baum Stadium this year.

As a team, the Razorbacks are hitting .358, while the pitching staff has garnered a 2.71 ERA. The starting pitchers have picked up seven of the 14 victories, while the staff as a whole is holding batters to a .233 average.

At the plate, the Hogs have smashed 36 of its season’s 53 homers at Baum Stadium and are slugging a combined .629.

One player that has been red hot at home and on the road is freshman outfielder Heston Kjerstad.

The Amarillo, Texas native was the best hitter on the team during the eight-game road stretch hitting .455 and leading the team in all the slash categories (.970 slugging percentage, .514 on-base percentage), and he’s totaled 15 hits with nine going for extra bases.

He also clubbed four home runs after hitting just three in the first 20 games of the season. Over his last 10 games, the Amarillo, Texas native has hit .450 (18-for-40) with five home runs and 12 RBIs.

He’s currently on a 12-game hitting streak, which is the longest active streak on the team.

As a team, Arkansas has the best offense in the SEC leading in batting average (.337), runs scored (71), slugging percentage (.607), on-base percentage (.408), hits (114), RBIs (70), home runs (24), and total bases (205) heading into the fourth week of SEC play.

RAZORBACK PRIME 9

• Arkansas now sits at 19-9 on the year and 5-4 in the SEC, which still puts it in a tie for second in the SEC Western Division, one game behind Ole Miss.

• In its nine conference games, the Hogs have continued to show a strong offense, hitting a combined .337 with 71 runs scored and 24 home runs.

• The Razorbacks lead all SEC teams in batting average (.337), runs scored (71), slugging percentage (.607), on-base percentage (.408), hits (114), RBIs (70), home runs (24), and total bases (205) after the first three weeks of conference play.

• Infielder Carson Shaddy led all Hog hitters over last week’s four-game stretch, hitting an even .400 with six hits in 15 at-bats.

Shaddy also drove in six RBIs over that stretch with one home run and one stolen base.

• Shaddy has at least one hit in 11 of his last 13 games and now has eight multi-hit games.

• It’s been a strong roadtrip for Kjerstad as he’s hit .455 over the eight-game stretch, leading the team in all the slash categories (.970 slugging percentage, .514 on-base percentage), and he’s totaled 15 hits with nine going for extra bases.

He also clubbed four home runs after hitting just three in the first 20 games of the season.

• Kjerstad currently has the third-best batting average in the SEC .390 and is on a 12-game hitting streak, the longest active streak on the team.

• After falling by one run in both games two and three at Ole Miss over the weekend, Arkansas has now played eight one-run games this season, winning three against Arizona, USC and Memphis.

• The Razorbacks still rank first in the SEC and second in the nation in home runs (53) after hitting six against Ole Miss over the weekend.

Before Saturday’s game two with the Rebels, the Hogs had hit at least one homer in 12-straight games.