Williams has career day against LSU, but Hogs fall

ESPN Arkansas News Services
-
0

FAYETTEVILLE — Sophomore Kiara Williams put Arkansas on her shoulders with a career-best 19 points, but the Razorbacks came up short against LSU, 62-57, on Senior Day on Sunday.

LSU (18-7, 10-4 SEC) held an 11-point lead at the end of 30 minutes. The Tigers won the third quarter, 20-15, but Arkansas buckled down in the final stanza with a couple of scoring bursts to cut the lead.Williams went 6-for-8 from the field and 7-for-8 from the line.

She added nine rebounds and two steals in 30 minutes. Junior Malica Monk was also in double figures, scoring 17 points for Arkansas (12-15, 3-11 SEC).

The Razorbacks kept the game close, as they outscored the Tigers 16-5 to pull within two points, 57-55, with 1:14 to go.

LSU took a time out and scored out of the break. Arkansas missed on its end of the floor and was forced to foul as time ran out.

The Tigers took advantage of 17 Razorback turnovers and they grabbed 15 steals. Seventeen turnovers ties for the fourth most in a game this season by Arkansas. LSU scored 15 points off the Razorbacks’ miscues.

Devin Cosper, the team’s only senior, finished her day with five points and six rebounds. She added three assists, two blocks and four steals in 31 minutes.

Cosper graduated last year with her undergraduate degree in journalism and is currently working on her master’s degree in journalism.

Notes

• Arkansas set a program record for made 3-point field goals with their third shot from distance. The Razorbacks made four from beyond the arc in the game and have 204 for the year.

• Kiara Williams had a game-high 13 points at the half and finished with a career-best 19 points in the game.

• Malica Monk finished with 17 points, scoring in double figures for the 25th time in 27 games this year.

Up Next
Arkansas hosts Texas A&M on Thursday and travels to Vanderbilt on Sunday as the regular season comes to a close.

Razorbacks finish off Bucknell for series sweep

ESPN Arkansas News Services
-
0

FAYETTEVILLE — After scoring a combined 46 over the previous two games, third-ranked Arkansas only needed three runs to secure a sweep over Bucknell Sunday afternoon, winning 3-1 at Baum Stadium.

Arkansas’s hitters scattered nine hits over the course of the game and got a key home run from junior Eric Cole in the seventh inning to provide the insurance run.

Cole finished the game a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate with his lone run and RBI coming off his first long ball of the year.

On the mound, redshirt junior right-hander Keaton McKinney made his first appearance since 2016 after having to go through Tommy John surgery last year.

The Iowa native looked good through two innings, giving up just one run on one hit with two walks and two strikeouts. He was limited to a pitch count as he faced eight batters and threw 44 pitches.

Following him, fans got to see the arms of sophomore Matt Cronin, freshmen Caleb Bolden and Jackson Rutledge, and junior Jake Reindl, respectively.

Cronin ended up earning the win after throwing a scoreless third inning. Bolden had the longest outing with three innings of work and one hit allowed.

Reindl ended up with the save as he battled back from a lead-off double in the ninth and struck out the final batter.

The opening weekend sweep was Arkansas’ fifth straight dating back to 2014.

The 49 runs produced over the three-game stretch is easily the most by an Arkansas team over its first three games of the year since 1997 when the Hogs plated 60 runs against ULM, Missouri Southern, and Iowa.

Moments That Mattered

Bucknell was able to strike first in the second inning as McKinney struggled with command, walking two of the first three batters of the inning.

Tyler Wincig’s RBI single to left-center scored the game’s first run, but McKinney got some help from his defense in the next at-bat.

Freshman Heston Kjerstad’s catch and throw to the plate on a Bucknell fly ball was a perfect strike to get Evan Klugerman, who was trying to tag up on the play.

The defensive play was just the latest in what was a big weekend for the Amarillo, Texas native.

Kjerstad finished the series as Arkansas’ leading hitter with a .667 average with six hits, two being doubles, five runs scored, three RBIs, and four hit by pitches.

In the bottom of the second, Arkansas put its first run on the board, which started with a two-out hit from catcher Grant Koch.

After a Jared Gates walk, Carson Shaddy singled Koch home for his ninth RBI of the weekend.

Shaddy was, arguably, Arkansas’ most efficient hitter of the weekend as he went 4-for-7 (.571) at the plate with a team-leading nine RBIs, two home runs and walked four times.

Arkansas broke through again in the third inning to take a 2-1 lead off a Luke Bonfield single. With the lead in hand for the Razorbacks, Bucknell was forced to go to the bullpen and bring in one of their top pitchers in Jeff Gottesman.

Gottesman held the Hog bats in check for the next 4.2 innings, giving up just one run on three hits with one walk allowed.

The Hogs did get one big hit off Gottesman, which came in the seventh inning from the bat of Cole.

The junior took a 1-0 pitch the opposite way and had enough power under it to carry through the strong wind that was blowing in and land in the Hog Pen.

Razorback Quotables

“Obviously it was a lot crisper game, the wind made a difference. I think they may have hit one ball that may have gone out of the park and over our centerfielders head and two other balls that may have gotten out of the park, but that’s the beauty of baseball.”  — Coach Dave Van Horn on the win and the windy conditions

“They (Bucknell) stayed in the game. It was a good ball game. Looking ahead, the game is probably what we needed. A little drama and tension, nothing in the bag headed into the ninth inning. We got that feeling. Overall, it was a great weekend for our team.”  — Van Horn on winning a close game

“Defense will win you games and I have told this team many times that if we can play defense, we are going to be hard to beat.” — Van Horn on his team’s strong defense through opening weekend

“At first the wind was kind of weird today and I didn’t know how deep it was going to go. It ended up going deep enough to where I knew it would be a close play. As soon as I saw the ball coming, I knew we had a shot. He (Kjerstad) threw the ball really well and he gave me a lane. I wanted to make the play for Heston (Kjerstad) because he made a great throw and plays like that can change a game.” — Grant Koch on the throw from Heston Kjerstad to complete the double play in the second inning

“It felt good to be out there today, it has been a while. Overall, I felt good. My arm did get a little tight, but this is all part of the process and I just need to work through it.”  — Keaton McKinney on his first outing since Tommy John surgery

“We aren’t going to score 30 runs every game and I think it was good to have a close game on a Sunday and get the freshman ready for this upcoming weekend because we know we will have close games. Coach (Van Horn) always harps on championship teams winning on Sundays.” — Eric Cole on winning the close game with Bucknell

Up Next

The Razorbacks head west to take part in the Tony Gwynn Legacy Tournament in San Diego, California.

The tournament will begin on Friday, but the Hogs will play one neutral site game against Arizona on Wednesday at Tony Gwynn Stadium on the campus of San Diego State. First pitch is scheduled for 9 p.m. and will be televised on CST.

Van Horn after Hogs battle to sweep opening series

ESPN Arkansas News Services
-
0

Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn after the Razorbacks’ 3-1 win over Bucknell on Sunday to close out the opening weekend with a sweep.

Cole, McKinney, Koch after getting series sweep

ESPN Arkansas News Services
-
0

Razorbacks Eric Cole, Keaton McKinney and Grant Koch with the media after the Hogs’ 2-1 win Sunday afternoon to complete the series sweep.

Upset over No. 21 Utah highlights win in softball openers

ESPN Arkansas News Services
-
0

CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. — After a delayed start to their season, Arkansas opened the 2018 campaign with wins over Grand Canyon and No. 21 Utah on day one of the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic.

Arkansas totaled four home runs—three in game one against Grand Canyon—while freshman Mary Haff collected two wins in the circle. Fellow freshman Linnie Malkin had two of the Razorbacks’ four big flies.

Up Next

Arkansas returns to the Big League Dreams complex Sunday for games against Weber State and Loyola Marymount. First pitch of the day is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.

The Razorbacks’ remaining three games of the Mary Nutter Classic will be played on the Fenway field.

Game 1: Arkansas 6, Grand Canyon 2 | Box Score

Already ahead thanks to Malkin’s two-run shot in the second inning, the Razorbacks padded their advantage with back-to-back solo home runs by Malkin and Haydi Bugarin in the fourth.

The 4-0 lead was more than enough for Haff who recorded seven strikeouts in the complete-game performance.

With GCU runners on first and second and no outs in the second, Haff struck out the next three hitters to get out of trouble.

The Winter Haven, Fla., native retired 12 of 13 at one point in the game including 10 in a row. The Lopes broke through with two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning but worked a 1-2-3 seventh to record the win.

Malkin opened the scoring with a two-run, no-doubt blast to left field. She becomes the 16th player in program history and just the fifth freshman with two home runs in one game.

Tori Cooper and Bugarin added insurance runs with RBI singles in fifth and seventh innings, respectively. Arkansas improves to 10-12 all-time in season openers and has won five of its last eight openers.

Game 2: Arkansas 4, #21 Utah 2 | Box Score

Loren Krzysko was 3-for-4 in the Razorbacks’ second win of the day including a solo home run in the first and the go-ahead, two-run single in the top of the seventh inning.

Haff worked three innings of scoreless relief to secure her second win of the day. Over those three innings, she struck out six Utes including the final two hitters of the game.

Krzysko gave Arkansas and starter Autumn Storms an early 1-0 lead but Utah went ahead with two unearned run in its half of the third frame.

Storms allowed a one-out double in the fourth but worked out of trouble with a ground ball and fly ball to left.

The Razorbacks tied the game at 2-2 when pinch runner Keely Edwards scored on a passed ball in the fourth inning.

Arkansas was retired in order in the fifth and sixth innings before putting together the game-winning rally.

Runners were on first and second after back-to-back singles from Bugarin and Autumn Buczek; both advanced when another pitch got away from the Utah catcher.

Krzysko delivered with a single back through the circle that plated both runs and put the Razorbacks on top by the eventual winning 4-2 score.

Arkansas concludes SEC meet on Saturday in Texas

ESPN Arkansas News Services
-
0

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Arkansas sent its most athletes through to the evening finals so far this week, as four swimmers competed Saturday night.

Action began Saturday morning with the 200 butterfly prelims, where Arkansas sent two to the evening finals, as senior Jessie Garrison punched her ticket to the B-final, swimming a season-best 1:57.52 in the prelims. Junior Marlena Pigliacampi earned a spot in the C-final with a time of 1:58.67 in the prelims.

In the finals, Garrison topped her prelim time, clocking a personal-best 1:57.41 to finish fourth in the B-final. Pigliacampi found herself in a three-way tie for third in the C-final, turning in a time of 1:58.70.

Seniors Chelsea Tatlow and Taylor Weiss also swam in the 200 fly, finishing sixth and eighth respectively in the fifth prelim heat. Tatlow’s prelim time of 2:00.07 was good for 29th overall, while Weiss’ time of 2:01.20 earned her a 36th-place showing.

Junior Madison Umberger was the lone Razorback to compete in the 100 back, finishing fourth in her heat, 44th overall in a season-best 56.04.

Along with the 200 fly, Arkansas sent two swimmers to the finals of the 100 breast. Seniors Madison Strathman and Sydney Angell earned spots in the C-final of the event, as Strathman touched in a then-season-best 1:01.55 in the prelims, while Angell turned in a then-personal best in the prelims with a time of 1:01.86.

In the finals, both recorded personal bests, as Angell touched second in the C-final in 1:01.36, while Strathman followed in third in 1:01.49.

Senior Madison Edwards also competed in the 200 fly prelims, touching in a season-best 1:04.33 for a fourth-place finish in her heat, finishing 36th overall.

In the evening relay, Arkansas’ quartet of Chloe Hannam, Angell, Olivia Weekley and Annah Carney, touched eighth in the 400 medley relay for a 8th-place finish in 3:37.41, the third-fastest time in school history.

Championship Sunday will begin 10 a.m. tomorrow morning with the preliminary round of the 200 backstroke, 100 freestyle, 200 breaststroke and the platform dive. The finals will begin at 6 p.m. and will be televised on SEC Network.

Standings – Day Four
1. Texas A&M – 953
2. Georgia – 748
3. Tennessee – 706.5
4. Kentucky –  592.5
5. Auburn – 528.5
6. Missouri – 508
7. South Carolina – 456
8. Florida – 429.5
9. Alabama – 407
10. Arkansas –329
11. LSU – 282
12. Vanderbilt – 152

Razorbacks wrap up first day at Gator Invitational

ESPN Arkansas News Services
-
0

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Arkansas recorded rounds of 286-283 – 569 (+9) on Saturday during the opening rounds of the SunTrust Gator Invitational and sit in 10th place overall at Mark Bostick Golf Course.

In a field that features seven nationally ranked programs, No. 5 Vanderbilt leads the way at 8-under, followed by No. 6 Florida (-7), UCF (-2) and No. 25 South Florida (-2).

Arkansas rounds out the top 10 at 9-over and leads six teams, including UAB (+10) by one stroke and College of Charleston (+13) by four shots.

Senior Alvaro Ortiz used a 1-under 69 in the morning and an even-par 70 in the afternoon to lead the Razorbacks at T-19th overall, while sophomore Mason Overstreet carded rounds of 71-72 – 143 (+3) and is T-39th place.

Luis Garza (+6), Tyson Reeder (+7) and William Buhl (+8) are all separated by a shot, while Landon Ernst is 13-over playing as an individual.

The Razorbacks will tee off Sunday morning at 8 a.m. in the final round of the SunTrust Gator Invitational, playing alongside UAB and College of Charleston. Live Stats will be available at Golfstat.com or via the Golfstat Live app.

Razorback Lineup Day 1 Results

SunTrust Gator Invitational Day 1 Team Results

Barford, Gafford talk about big games in A&M victory

ESPN Arkansas News Services
-
0

Jaylen Barford (21 points) and Daniel Gafford (20 points) talked about putting up those big numbers in win over Aggies.

Aggies’ Kennedy praises Hogs’ play after loss on Saturday

ESPN Arkansas News Services
-
0

Texas A&M coach Billy Kennedy talked about the difference between this game and the Aggies’ win earlier in College Station.

Anderson pleased with Hogs’ play in win

ESPN Arkansas News Services
-
0

Arkansas coach Mike Anderson talks about his team’s performance in the win over No. 21 Texas A&M on Saturday.

Hogs bring offense in near-record numbers for win

ESPN Arkansas News Services
-
0
VIDEO FROM THE ESPN SEC NETWORK
No. 3 Arkansas brought the offense Saturday in game two against Bucknell and didn’t let up.

The Hogs nearly scored a school record for runs in a game as they throttled the Bison, 32-4, at Baum Stadium, winning the series.

The program record for runs scored in a game by an Arkansas team is 33 set in 1984 against Southwest Baptist and the Hogs fell just one run short of tying the record on Saturday.

With the help of 22 hits, six home runs and four innings of five or more runs, Arkansas’ starting pitcher Isaiah Campbell was able to relax through his four innings of work.

Campbell, who was making his first appearance since being shut down with an injury in the second week of the 2017 season, pitched well over four frames, allowing just three hits, one earned run and two walks.

He also tallied seven strikeouts, which was a career high.

At the plate, freshman Casey Martin had a breakout day, going 4-for-6 with five RBIs and three runs scored, leading all hitters.

He also hit one of Arkansas’ six home runs in the game as he blasted his first round-tripper well into the Hog Pen in left field in the sixth inning to bring three runs in.

Dominic Fletcher, Grant Koch, Luke Bonfield, Carson Shaddy, and Jared Gates each hit a home run in the game as well. For Shaddy, it was his second in as many days.

Moments That Mattered

Coming off his injury a year ago, Campbell hoped to have a strong first outing on the mound, but struggled in the first inning when he allowed a lead-off walk, threw a wild pitch, and then gave up an RBI double, giving Bucknell the early lead.

However, he was able to settle down nicely to retire nine of the next 10 batters he faced, striking out six during that span.

After Campbell got things under control, Arkansas’ offense went to work starting with a three-run home run by Bonfield in the first inning to take the lead right back.

Then, in the second inning, Arkansas plated six more runs, five off the homers from Shaddy, Fletcher, and Koch to take a 9-1 lead.

The Razorbacks biggest inning came in the third as they scored seven times, but only needed two hits to do it.

Bucknell’s pitching staff struggled mightily with control in the third as they allowed six walks and the Razorbacks took advantage, scoring on a fielder’s choice, a bases-loaded walk, a two-RBI single by Heston Kjerstad and a three-RBI double by Shaddy.

It’s been a banner weekend so far for Shaddy with still one game to go.

Through the first two games, the redshirt senior is 3-for-4 with two home runs, eight RBIs, four walks, and three runs scored.

The eight RBIs leads all Razorbacks and the four walks ties him for the team lead with Eric Cole and Grant Koch.

Back on the mound, Evan Lee, Cody Scroggins, Zebulon Vermillion, Hunter Milligan, and Jacob Kostyshock all followed Campbell with each working one inning.

Scroggins, Milligan, and Kostyshock each threw perfect frames, while Lee and Vermillion gave up three of Bucknell’s four runs.

Razorback Quotables

“It was good to see Isaiah (Campbell) bounce back after that first inning. He did a good job getting out of that inning. You could tell he was uncomfortable. I think he was a little bit nervous. He threw extremely well the next three innings. We needed to see that and he needed to see that. Once he got over the hump, he did what he does and they have a hard time hitting him.” — Coach Dave Van Horn on Isaiah Campbell’s first start back after injury

“What I liked about the offense today was the same thing as yesterday; we didn’t go out of the zone a whole lot. They made their (Bucknell’s) starting pitchers throw a lot of pitches. We waited until we got a good pitch to hit or two strikes before we went after anything. It was just a good job of taking the walks.” — Van Horn on his offense’s performance

“You never know how many runs you’re going to score. You don’t want to run it up on anybody. They were probably trying to save some guys for Sunday’s game. When our starters did well, we brought in other guys. Those guys want to make an impression and do well. It’s one thing we have and that’s competition. There’s competition to play, competition to pitch and it’s healthy for our team. I know we’re capable of scoring runs. I made that comment in the fall. We predicted we’d have some days where we scored 15 or 16 runs, but you can’t predict something like that.” — Van Horn on the large offensive output

“I’m not going to lie, I was really nervous. I haven’t thrown in a game in a full year. Getting back in front of the crowd, I had my nerves, but after that first batter, I settled in and was good after that.” — Isaiah Campbell on his first start coming off the injury

“I think this showed the work we’ve put in. Our approaches were really solid today. Nothing against Bucknell’s pitchers. They had to come out and endure some long innings. We’ve been there. I think we were just locked in today and prepared to get a win.” — Carson Shaddy on the offense’s showing

Up Next

The Razorbacks will meet Bucknell on Sunday for the series finale at Baum Stadium. First pitch is slated for 12:02 p.m. and will be televised on SEC Network+.

1...1,6371,6381,639...1,811Page 1,638 of 1,811