Spanberger delivers 10th-inning homer to lift Hogs to win
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Chad Spanberger’s 10th inning home run was the final blow Arkansas needed to take the series opener over Texas A&M on Thursday night at Blue Bell Park.
The Aggies had already forced the game into extras with a single run in the bottom of the ninth, but Spanberger’s 12th home run of the year silenced the Aggie crowd in the 10th and gave the Hogs their third extra-inning win of the season.
The home run for Spanberger was his only hit of the night as he went 1-for-4 at the plate. Coming into the game, he only had three hits in 21 at-bats, one of those hits being a home run.
However, Thursday night’s homer might have been his most clutch hit of the year.
Arkansas had allowed Texas A&M to tie the game at 4-4 in the ninth after Jake Reindl couldn’t close out the game, allowing a lead-off walk to Hunter Coleman and a double to Cole Bedford. Jorge Gutierrez followed Bedford with a deep sacrifice fly to right field to tie the game and send it to extras.
Two quick outs started the top of the 10th for the Hog bats and looked as if there would be no response.
Fortunately, Jake Arledge came through with a big two-out single to put a runner on and then Spanberger unloaded an opposite field home run that appeared to fly over the Texas A&M video board in left field.
On the mound, junior pitcher Trevor Stephan threw another gem of a game, even after giving up a home run to Braden Shewmake in the third inning that, at the time, gave Texas A&M the 3-2 lead.
After the long ball, Stephan allowed just two hits over the next four innings, striking out six in the process before running into trouble in the eighth.
Stephan had to settle for the no-decision, finishing with 7.2 innings pitched, three runs allowed, and 10 strikeouts with only one walk. It was his third-straight start of seven innings or more and 10 or more strikeouts.
Reindl corralled the victory, his third of the year after coming in to pitch in the ninth inning. Even though he gave up the game-tying run, he was able to come back and finish off the 10th with a 1-2-3 inning, needing just 14 pitches.
Offensively, the Razorbacks didn’t struggle at the plate as they knocked out 15 hits compared to only six by the Aggies.
Jax Biggers led all hitters, going 3-for-5 with three RBIs and a run scored. He was just a triple short of the cycle as his eighth inning two-run home run was his fourth of the year.
Biggers continues to be one of Arkansas’ most consistent hitters this year as he is hitting a team-leading .333 on the year and .337 against SEC opponents.
He has at least one hit in six of his last seven games and now has 18 multi-hit games, five of three hits or more.
Razorback Quotables
“We told our guys once they scored, ‘Let’s get in the dugout. We still have a chance. We’re out of school. Let’s stay here all night and do whatever we have to do.’ We just wanted to relax them a little bit. Obviously, we got a big two-out single by our lead-off man, Jake Arledge. (Chad) Spanberger had a great at-bat and on the sixth or seventh pitch of the at-bat, he hits one over the top of that scoreboard, which was pretty amazing.” — Coach Dave Van Horn on the extra-inning victory over Texas A&M
“The story of the night, to me, was Trevor Stephan. He made one bad pitch after an error and gave up three runs on the home run and all of the sudden we were down. We just never got those big hits that gave us that big inning. (Texas A&M’s) pitching is really good and they did a great job of holding us down. It seemed like we left a lot on base. It was frustrating, but it’s how the game works sometimes. You just have to keep grinding it out.” — Van Horn on how Arkansas was able to stay in the game
Up Next
Arkansas is back on the field with Texas A&M tomorrow for game two of the series starting at 6:30 p.m.
The game can be seen online only on SEC Network+ via the Watch ESPN app and WatchESPN.com. Phil Elson will have the call on the radio via the Razorback Sports Network.
Arkansas’ ‘dangerous lineup’ must keep bats hot
SEC Now’s Gabe Gross and Dari Nowkhah break down the Razorbacks’ strengths and areas to improve on as the postseason approaches.
Neighbors signs another transfer, this time from Sooners
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas coach Mike Neighbors announced his fourth addition to the Razorback roster in Chelsea Dungee on Tuesday.
Dungee joins the Razorbacks after one season at Oklahoma. She will sit out the 2017-18 season per NCAA transfer rules.
“Chelsea saying yes to the Arkansas Razorbacks is the jumpstart we need to reinvigorate our regional visibility,” Neighbors said. “She is widely known for being ultra-competitive and willing to do whatever it takes to help her team.
“Chelsea has international experience winning a gold-medal with USA Basketball and she was an All-Big 12 freshman team performer at Oklahoma.
“She is a perfect fit for our style of play and will make an impact for us both in her transfer year and in our future,” Neighbors continued. “Chelsea played for Darlene Calip, who I worked with at Tulsa, and so I am confident we have added a much-needed and high-quality player to our Razorback roster.
“Our fans will be reminded of great Razorback competitors like fellow Oklahoman Wendi Willits, Sarah Pfeifer and Melissa Wolff. Chelsea has the potential to leave her own mark in the history of Razorback basketball.”
Dungee was a Big 12 All-Freshman Team member in 2017 after appearing in 33 games with 18 starts for the Sooners.
She was second on the team with an 81.1 free throw percentage and averaged 7.4 points, 2.5 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.
Dungee had a career-high 18 points and nine rebounds in a road win at Texas Tech, and she went 6-for-12 from the floor with two 3-pointers in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Washington as a freshman.
The 5-11 guard played two years each at Preston (Okla.) and Sapulpa (Okla.) High Schools. With Preston as a freshman and sophomore, she helped the team to a state title averaging 25.9 points, 10.0 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game.
She scored 52 points on 18-of-25 shooting against Tulsa Rogers in her sophomore season. Dungee earned Gatorade Player of the Year honors and earned selection to the Oklahoma Super 5, and first team all-state honors as a sophomore.
Dungee played her junior and senior seasons at Sapulpa scoring 18.4 points and grabbing 4.7 rebounds per game in her final year.
In addition to her high school career, Dungee led USA Basketball’s U16 squad to a gold medal at the 2013 FIBA Americas Championships.
Dungee brings the total number of newcomers to six for next season. Fayetteville’s Grayce Spangler and Macy Weaver (Stillman Valley, Illinois) signed during in November and Raven Northcross-Baker (Malvern) and Taylah Thomas (Arlington, Texas) were welcomed to the team in May. Neighbors also locked up Florida State transfer A’Tyanna Gaulden earlier this week.
Neighbors adds transfer from Florida State to Hogs’ roster
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas women’s basketball coach Mike Neighbors announced the addition of transfer A’Tyanna Gaulden to the Razorback roster on Monday.
Gaulden joins Arkansas after her freshman season at Florida State. She will not play in 2017-18 due to NCAA transfer rules.
“Explosive, high IQ, great decision making guards are rare in women’s college basketball but we got one to be a Razorback today,” Neighbors said. “From the day that A’T announced her decision to transfer from Florida State, coach Todd Schaefer was relentless in pursuit of reaching her and her family.
“Once we made contact, we made an immediate connection like no other that I have ever experienced in recruiting. Her mother, Zenochia Johnson, and siblings Un’Naka Gaulden and Roniya Wynn have provided a wonderful support system for her to grow into the leader she is.
“Her coaches Sherri Harris at Americus Sumter HS and summer coach, and Godfather, Rick Jones have mentored A’T into a fierce competitor and caring teammate.
“Although she will sit a year in residency as a transfer, she will immediately impact our program challenging Malica Monk and Devin Cosper on a daily basis.
“A’Tyanna brings NCAA Tournament experience that is invaluable for those who have never experienced the tournament. She will remind Razorback fans of Brittany Vaughn, Cierra Ricketts, and Kamara Stancle. We are thrilled she is a Razorback.”
The 5-7 guard is originally from Ocilla, Georgia, where she averaged 20.9 points per game, 7.5 assists per game, 6.3 steals per game and 5.1 rebounds per game for Americus Sumter High School.
As a prep player, Gaulden was ranked sixth among all guard in the ESPNW 2016 recruiting class and was No. 23 overall. She was a five-star player who earned Atlanta Journal Constitution Player of the Year after her senior season.
In addition, Gaulden earned AJC First-Team honors in 2015 and 2016 while averaging 21.4 points, 6.8 assists, 4.3 steals and 4.6 rebounds per game in her junior season.
She paced Americus Sumter to a 29-2 record as a junior and the Elite Eight of the Georgia state playoffs.
As a freshman at Florida State, Gaulden came in off the bench in 21 games averaging 1.1 points, 0.6 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game in 5.7 minutes per contest. She was 7-of 15 from the floor and had 22 assists.
Hogs’ Deifel: ‘I’m excited for this to be the new standard’
• 2017 NCAA Tournament Bracket
FAYETTEVILLE — Softball coach Courtney Deifel met with local media Monday morning to discuss the Razorbacks’ at-large selection into the 2017 NCAA Division I Softball Championship.
With the bid, Arkansas now has seven NCAA Regional appearances and its first since the 2013 season.
The Razorbacks play Tulsa in the opening game of the Norman Regional with first pitch scheduled for 11:30 a.m. on the SEC Network.
On initial reaction to NCAA Tournament selection …
“It was pretty exciting. Any time you see your name pop up on the NCAA Tournament it’s a pretty exciting night. To see our girls’ reaction with the way they worked themselves back into (the NCAA Tournament) made it pretty special. I’m excited to see them go to work this weekend.”
On all 13 SEC teams getting a bid …
“Our conference is so strong and the body of work for each team speaks for itself. We play the toughest schedules in the country and we all have good wins and bodies of work. To me, I think we all worked our way in and they acknowledged that last night.”
On the May 5 win over Georgia …
“It played a huge part in just getting us to the SEC Tournament, and I think that was the big step in proving that we belonged there, and that’s only going to help us down the stretch in the postseason. For one, it get our girls that first experience of the postseason and being on that big stage playing for something big.”
On her first NCAA appearance as a head coach …
“I’m just excited for the team. I’m excited for them to experience this and I’m excited for this to be the new standard of what we shoot for every year. I’m really proud of them.”
On the other teams in the Norman Regional …
“I know they’re all very strong. I know that we have a really tough draw but everyone has a tough draw this time of year. That’s what postseason is all about. We have teams that have really strong pitching. When you look at Tulsa, they have a strong arm in their ace Emily Watson. She can really throw it. Beyond that, North Dakota State can always throw it and Oklahoma has a great staff so there are three very strong teams. There are three teams that know how to win and are comfortable in the postseason so we’re expecting some battles this weekend and it starts with Tulsa.”
On first-game opponent, Tulsa …
“We both know a lot about each other. It’s interesting at this point of the year to know so much about two of your three opponents and then we played North Dakota State just last year. In the two games we had with Tulsa, they were both kind of lopsided. When we played them the first time, we didn’t play our best game and they played very well. When we played them the second time, we played a much better game and they didn’t have their best game so I expect both of us to bring our best this weekend.”
On playing in Norman …
“When we’re playing for something bigger than we’re typically playing for, it’s nice to go to a stadium you’ve played in and against a team that you’ve played. Also, we’re close to home and we travel really well so it’ll be good for our fans to make the short three and a half hour drive, and hopefully Call the Hogs with us.”
On making the NCAA Tournament in second year at Arkansas …
“When we set out, this was always a goal that we shot for but we never really spoke about. It was more about getting these student-athletes to buy in to being better every day. When you do that and absolutely sell out to being better Razorbacks every day, then things like NCAA berths happen. Did we sit down as a staff and say ‘oh, in year two…?’ Absolutely not but we wanted it so badly for this team. It’s such a special group of girls and I’m so excited, especially that our senior class gets to experience this.”
Arkansas back in NCAA Tournament for first time in three years
NCAA Norman Regional | Host Information
Who: No. 10 Oklahoma (50-8), Tulsa (39-15), Arkansas (31-22), North Dakota State (28-31)
When: May 19-21, 2017
Where: Marita Hynes Field (Norman, Okla.)
• 2017 NCAA Tournament Bracket
FAYETTEVILLE — Breaking a three-season absence from the national tournament, Arkansas earned an at-large bid into the 2017 NCAA Division I Softball Championship as announced Sunday evening.
It marks the program’s seventh NCAA appearance, and first since 2013.
For the sixth time in those seven bids, the Razorbacks are part of the Norman Regional and will open play Friday at 11:30 a.m. against Tulsa.
In her second season at the helm of the program, coach Courtney Deifel has orchestrated a 14-win improvement over last year’s record which marks the best turnaround among Power 5 teams entering the NCAA Tournament.
Arkansas’ seven wins in SEC play equal the program’s combined total over the previous three years. The Razorbacks began their postseason last week with their 10th overall appearance at the SEC Tournament in Knoxville.
The Razorbacks enter the NCAA Tournament with an SEC-leading 57 home runs including a single-season record 16 home runs by senior Nicole Schroeder and 10 off the bat of junior Tori Cooper.
When all-conference honors were announced last week, junior shortstop A.J. Belans was named to the All-SEC Second Team while pitcher Autumn Storms earned a spot on the SEC All-Freshman Team.
Three homers, strong pitching lifts Hogs to series win over Vandy
FAYETTEVILLE — With the help of three home runs and strong pitching, Arkansas cruised past Vanderbilt on Sunday afternoon, winning 7-1 in its regular season home finale.
The win for Arkansas helps claim its 12th series of the year and fifth in conference play. It’s the first series win since the Hogs swept Georgia (April 13-15) and moves their overall record to 37-14, 16-10 in SEC play.
Arkansas’ 1-6 hitters recorded at least one hit in the game on Sunday, part of a 10-hit outburst that brought home the seven runs. The six-hole hitter Carson Shaddy came away with top marks, going 3-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored, his third three-hit game of the year.
Even with the wide array of hits up and down the lineup, the home run ball was all Arkansas really needed as Grant Koch, Dominic Fletcher, and Chad Spanberger all went deep to up the Hogs’ season total to 66 home runs.
Koch’s two-run blast in the first inning was what got the Hogs off and running. It was his second home run of the series and fourth in the last seven games to give him 13 for the year.
Koch finished the series 4-for-10 (.400) with three RBIs, two home runs and two runs scored.
Since the double-header against Ole Miss (April 28), the Fayetteville native is hitting .320 with four of his eight hits in the form of a home run.
On the mound, senior Dominic Taccolini got the start and the victory, his fourth of the year. Taccolini only threw 4.2 innings in his first action in nearly a month, but gave up just one run, a home run to Julian Infante in the second, and three hits with one walk on 72 pitches.
Sophomore Jake Reindl relieved Taccolini in the middle of the fifth with Vanderbilt threatening with two men on base and two outs. Reindl was able to escape the inning on one pitch and then finished the remainder of the game to earn his third save of the year.
Reindl threw 4.1 scoreless innings, allowing just three hits and tied a career-high with six strikeouts in what was a good bounce back performance from his Friday night appearance.
Moments That Mattered
It all started with Koch’s two-run home run in the first inning that got the scoring going. Razorback hitters were aggressive at the plate all afternoon as their first four runs came with two outs.
Koch continues to lead all Hog hitters with his 13 home runs and it’s the second-most by a Razorback in the last seven seasons.
Vanderbilt responded with its solo homer from Infante in the second, but that was all Vandy could muster against Taccolini or Reindl for the rest of the game.
Taccolini retired eight of the first nine batters he faced in the game and worked a perfect fourth inning before running into trouble in the fifth.
Arkansas added insurance runs in the fourth and fifth innings on sacrifice flies by Jax Biggers and Carson Shaddy to make it 4-1. In the sixth, the bats broke it open with a solo home run by Fletcher and a two-run homer from Spanberger to add to the final tally.
Both Fletcher and Spanberger’s home runs were hit in nearly the same spot as both bounced off the foul pole, giving Arkansas its’ biggest cushion of the weekend.
Fletcher has continued to hit the ball well as it was his 10th home run of the year and fourth in his last seven games. It’s the first time since 2010 that Arkansas has had three or more players with 10 or more home runs in the same season.
Razorback Quotables
“He did a really good job. He really didn’t have command of his breaking ball, but his fastball had a lot of sink. They went up there swinging, hit some balls hard and made some nice plays, but Dom just kept battling. He got up to 73-75 pitches, we felt like that was enough. They had been through the lineup twice, so we went and got Jake (Reindl). It was really good for him to go out and give us more than four innings and give us a chance to get us to our next four guys if we need it, we only needed one.” — Coach Dave Van Horn on Dominic Taccolini
“I think it was the biggest swing of the day. It gave us a good feeling. That was the first time we’ve had the lead this weekend, except when we won the game in the bottom of the ninth. We’ve either been tied or behind. It gave us some confidence, probably gave Dominic (Taccolini) some confidence. You could tell that when he hit that home run, they were a little on edge over there.” — Van Horn on Grant Koch’s first-inning home run
“We came in today with a little more aggressive mindset, overall, not just at the plate. We kind of came out on a mission. You know, Sunday’s our day and we’ve got to win on Sunday to be a good team.” — Grant Koch on the team’s mindset
“Really, really good stuff today. I mean, I think they are both at their best, especially Dom coming out. He hadn’t thrown in a while. I had 100 percent confidence in him in every pitch and in every count. — Koch on Dominic Taccolini and Jake Reindl’s performances
Up Next
Arkansas travels to College Station, Texas to face Texas A&M for its final series of the regular season starting on Thursday at Blue Bell Park. First pitch is slated for 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network+.
Game two will be on Friday, also at 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network+, while Saturday’s finale will be on the SEC Network at 11 a.m.
Hogs place second at men’s SEC Championships behind Aggies
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Entering the final day trailing the leader by 23 points, Arkansas displayed the guts and resolve that make it 19-time SEC outdoor champions.
The Razorbacks closed to within six points heading into the final race, but came up just short with a second place finish at the 2017 SEC Outdoor Championships held at Cregger Track.
Arkansas trailed Alabama by 23 points following the completion of day two, but used a 75-point final day to surpass the Tide, 106-103.
Out of 26 SEC Outdoor Championship appearances in program history, Arkansas has finished in the top two 23 times.
“We may have come up a few points short of our championship goal, but our DNA hasn’t changed,” said coach Chris Bucknam, who nearly led the Razorbacks to their 16th SEC Triple Crown. “Our guys competed unbelievably today and through the three days. In a meet like this, you need a few things to go your way and maybe it did not in a couple events, but it was not because our guys weren’t getting after it. I’m really proud of our team.”
Junior Kemar Mowatt proved he had the DNA of a Razorback throughout the day, as he accounted for 20 points over his two individual events and relay.
Mowatt’s most-capturing performance came in the 400-meter hurdles, an event in which he entered the weekend with the top time in the nation at 49.09. His nation-leading time did not hold up through the finals, as three runners bested the mark with the new number one coming from Mowatt at 48.79.
Mowatt is just the fifth Razorback to win the SEC outdoor 400-meter hurdles title, while his mark of 48.79 broke the Arkansas program record of 49.08 set by Sam Rogers in 2000.
“It’s a blessing. Coach Case told me exactly what to do and I went out there and executed,” said Mowatt. “Arkansas is a championship school and for me to come out here and get full points for the team means a lot.”
“One thing about Kemar is that he’s not afraid to race,” Bucknam said. “You see him in 4×100 relay, 110 hurdles, the 400 hurdles and you might see him in the 4×400 relay. Props to Coach Case who has done a great job with him. He (Kemar) goes about his business and keeps getting better.”
The day began with a light rain at the start of triple jump preliminaries that eventually turned into a steady downfall by the time finals started.
Not only having to deal with the rain, defending SEC outdoor champ and reigning national indoor champ Clive Pullen was dealing with a hamstring injury that occurred a few weeks ago.
After delivering a jump of 52-4 in the second round of the prelims that put in him second place, Pullen passed on all three of his jumps in the finals to eventually take fourth place.
One of the jumpers that moved past Pullen in the finals was junior Rubin Owens. Just a few months removed from a fourth-place finish at SEC indoors, Owens established a new PR on his first and third jumps of the prelims.
Owens, who turned in six jumps all over 50 feet, climbed up the leaderboard passed Pullen with his fifth jump of the day on a leap that measured 52-4¾. Owens’ third PR of the event was good enough to earn him third place, All-SEC second team honors and six critical points.
Arkansas’ momentum was stronger than the rain that still existed when the day’s running events commenced. The 4×100-meter relay squad of Roy Ejiakuekwu, Mowatt, Josh Washington and Kenzo Cotton proved that, as they combined to post a time of 39.02 out of lane five, good for second place and eight points. It was just the start of a busy day for Cotton, who was celebrating his birthday. He returned to the track later and picked up five more points in the 100 meters with a 10.23.
One of the most grueling races of the weekend at the SEC Championships is always the 5000 meters, which is the final individual competition. What can make it even harder is having to run the 5000 after competing in the 1500-meter race earlier in the day. That is exactly what junior Jack Bruce and sophomore Alex George did. After his second straight third place finish in the 1500 at SEC outdoors earlier in the afternoon, Bruce fought his way to another six-point contribution and third place finish in the 5000 with a time of 13:53.93. George, who has proven his long distance capabilities with a 2016 SEC cross country title, finished the 5000 just ahead of George in second place at 13:53.83. The duo along with sophomore Austen Dalquist, who was Arkansas’ first point scorer of the weekend in his first-ever go at the 10,000, combined to score 16 points in the 5000.
“Gutty performance by some gutty guys,” said Bucknam. “They laid it all out there on the track. We projected them to get 14 points and they said ‘we’re going get that more’ and they went out there and did it. Unbelievable performance.”
Team Standings
1. Texas A&M – 119
2. Arkansas – 106
3. Alabama – 103
4. Florida – 81.5
5. Georgia – 75
6. Ole Miss – 67
7. LSU – 57
8. South Carolina – 46
9. Auburn – 45.5
9. Tennessee – 45.5
11. Kentucky – 31.5
12. Missouri – 28
13. Mississippi State – 14
All-SEC First Team Performers
Kemar Mowatt – 400-Meter Hurdles
All-SEC Second Team Performers
Jack Bruce – 1500 Meters & 5000 Meters
Kenzo Cotton – 4×100-Meter Relay
Roy Ejiakuekwu – 4×100-Meter Relay
Alex George – 5000 Meters
Kemar Mowatt – 4×100-Meter Relay
Rubin Owens – Triple Jump
Josh Washington – 4×100-Meter Relay
Top 5 Point Scorers
Kemar Mowatt – 20
Kenzo Cotton – 13
Jack Bruce – 12
Josh Washington – 10
Roy Ejiakuekwu – 8
Alex George – 8
100 Meters
4. Kenzo Cotton – 10.23
110-Meter Hurdles
7. Kemar Mowatt – 13.90 – PR
8. Larry Donald – 13.97 – PR
200 Meters
7. Josh Washington – 20.72
9. Kenzo Cotton – 20.81
400 Meters
9. Obi Igbokwe – 46.84
400-Meter Hurdles
1. Kemar Mowatt – 48.79 – Arkansas Record & PR
7. Travius Chambers – 51.36
8. Larry Donald – 51.42
800 Meters
4. Carlton Orange – 1:47.28
1500 Meters
3. Jack Bruce – 3:54.05
6. Cameron Griffith – 3:54.95
9. Alex George – 3:55.99
5000 Meters
2. Alex George – 13:53.83
3. Jack Bruce – 13.53.93
7. Austen Dalquist – 13:58.09 – PR
14. Aidan Swain – 14:21.73 – PR
15. Ethan Moehn – 14:22.35 – PR
16. Kyle Levermore – 14:22.64
20. Cameron Griffith – 14:28.45
4×100-Meter Relay
2. Arkansas (Roy Ejiakuekwu, Kemar Mowatt, Josh Washington, Kenzo Cotton) – 39.02
4×400-Meter Relay
6. Arkansas (Jamarco Stephen, Eric Janise, Roy Ejiakuekwu, Obi Igbokwe) – 3:03.83 – Season-Best
Long Jump
3. Rubin Owens – 52-4¾ – PR
4. Clive Pullen – 52-4
Pole Vault
9. Brad Culp – 16-1¾
Vandy’s Wright shuts down Hogs’ bats; forces rubber match Sunday
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas faced a tough arm in Vanderbilt starter Kyle Wright Saturday night in Baum Stadium.
The Hogs only managed two hits off Wright, who pitched seven innings and struck out 11, before falling to the 25th-ranked Commodores, 6-2.
The win for Vanderbilt (30-20, 13-12 SEC) forces a rubber match for the weekend series. It’s the fifth series this year that Arkansas (36-14, 15-10 SEC) will have to play a rubber match. The Hogs have come out winners two of those times, both on the road at Missouri and Alabama.
Jake Arledge, Luke Bonfield, Grant Koch, and Jax Biggers all recorded hits in the game. Koch came away with his 12th home run of the year, a solo shot in the ninth inning, but it wasn’t enough to put the Hogs any closer after Vanderbilt had built a 6-0 lead.
Koch still leads the team in home runs and it’s the fifth-highest total among all players in the Southeastern Conference. In his last six games, Koch has hit three homers and gone 7-for-22 (.318) at the plate with five RBIs.
Arkansas didn’t get its first base runner until senior Alex Gosser reached on a walk in the third and Biggers provided the team’s first hit, a single, in the sixth. As a team, the Razorbacks finished with four hits, tying for its second-lowest total in a game this season.
Sophomore pitcher Blaine Knight nearly matched Wright pitch for pitch early on as he gave up just one run and struck out five over five innings, with all five of his strikeouts coming before the fourth inning. Unfortunately, he was saddled with the loss after giving up a solo home run to Will Toffey in the top of the fifth, which was the only run scored by either team until the seventh.
Senior Dominic Taccolini will get the start on Sunday for the Razorbacks. He’ll be making his first start since March 14 against Alcorn State, when he threw four innings, giving up one run on five hits with three strikeouts in the 3-2 victory. On the year, Taccolini has three victories and a 10-strikeout performance coming against ULM on March 7, matching his career-high.
Razorback Quotables
“He was awfully good. We had a couple of shots at him and he got off the hook. I thought Alex Gosser had a great at-bat at the start of the third inning. We didn’t really do anything after that. I think we had one other chance to get to him, and at the time we were just down a run. He just kept doing a great job of making some great pitches. He throws extremely hard but also has a lot of movement. He threw that breaking ball and mixed in a few change-ups, and did a really good job against us. He’s as good as advertised.” — Coach Dave Van Horn on Vanderbilt starter Kyle Wright
“They had runners on every inning off of him and he worked out of the stretch. He walked three and had a lot of full counts, and got some good hitters out, obviously. They did a good job against Blaine, fouling off pitches and battling to get his pitch count up. We did a pretty good job doing that to Wright after the third inning. We started rolling and getting his pitch count up. Then he started to calm down and get it under control again. Blaine couldn’t really recover after that home run and came out that next inning and gave up two hits. It was time to get him.” — Van Horn on Blaine Knight
“Really good stuff, honestly. He really battled tonight. That’s something. Coming into tonight, I figured he would have some fire in him and he did. He gave us all he got and that’s all we could ask from him.” — Grant Koch on Blaine Knight
“That was kind of good. Trying to get a little spark going, but it was a little too late. It’s all good. We’ll get them tomorrow.” — Koch on his ninth inning home run
Up Next
Arkansas and Vanderbilt will finish its series on Sunday with first pitch slated for 1 p.m. at Baum Stadium. Tomorrow’s game can be viewed on the SEC Network+ via the WatchESPN app and WatchESPN.com as well as the Razorback Sports Network on the radio with Phil Elson and Rick Schaeffer calling the action.
Arkansas picks up 10th straight SEC women’s championship
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Only one SEC program has won a conference title since the 2014 SEC Outdoor Championship.
Entering Saturday with a 43-point lead, Arkansas made sure it remained that one program, as it cruised to its 10th consecutive league title and third straight SEC Triple Crown at the 2017 SEC Outdoor Championships held at Cregger Track Saturday.
On the heels of a 65-point performance on Friday that included two first place finishers, the Razorbacks backed that up with 55 points and two more gold medalists for their fourth straight SEC outdoor title.
Arkansas’ total of 128 points was good for a 28-point victory over second-place LSU.
“To win an SEC title — and I think any program in any sport would agree — you better cherish the moment,” said coach Lance Harter following his 31st SEC title at Arkansas. “We have been on a roll thanks to great leadership from upperclassmen and youngsters that are willing to learn and follow the example. Our comradery has become a culture and I hope it continues.”
With the win, Arkansas became the first SEC program to four-peat at the outdoor championships since LSU did so from 1987-91.
“Anytime you can compare that type of history with what you just accomplished it’s special,” Harter said. “Those are things I used to read about in track and field magazines and think to myself ‘if we can ever be that good.’
“Now we are living it. It makes me appreciate the kids we have in our program.”
Junior Nikki Hiltz was the first of two Razorbacks to take the top spot on the podium Saturday, as she posted a time of 4:17.94 in the 1500 meters to become the eighth Razorback in program history to win the event.
An eighth-place finisher in the event a year ago, Hiltz’s win added 10 points to the 19-point effort put forth by the 1500-meter crew.
Senior Therese Haiss joined Hiltz during the medal presentation thanks to her third place finish in 4:19.29. Competing in her first SEC Outdoor Championship, freshman Carina Viljoen add the final three points in sixth.
Entering the weekend as the favorite in the 400 meters, senior Daina Harper proved in the preliminaries on Friday night that she was indeed the favorite by posting the top qualifying spot.
Harper didn’t disappoint in her return to the 400 Saturday afternoon, continuing Arkansas’ dominance in the event by taking the gold and the SEC indoor and outdoor season sweep in the event.
Harpers’ win marked the fifth time in the last six years a Razorback has won the SEC outdoor 400 meters. Harper’s 400 win was part of a 15-point day, which also included points in the 4×100-meter relay and 4×400-meter relay.
Already with eight points in the heptathlon and two more as a member of the 4×100-meter relay team, junior Payton Stumbaugh brought her total to 14 with a fifth place showing in the 100-meter hurdles.
One of just a few to compete all three days, Stumbaugh posted a 13.30 in the 100 hurdles to close out her weekend.
Just over an hour after winning the 1500 meters, Hiltz returned to score five more points for her team with fourth place in the 800 meters (2:06.09). The near double all-conference performance capped her 15-point day.
“One of the things we ask and challenge the kids with is how they can help the team,” said Harter. “How can they contribute to the team effort? Whether is a great performance or your bouncing back from a disappointing one to cheer on your teammate, how can you help?
“All of it matters when you want to win a championship and over the last three days everyone helped the team.”
Team Standings
1. Arkansas – 128
2. LSU – 100
3. Kentucky – 81
4. Georgia – 77
5. Florida – 76
6. Texas A&M – 72
7. Alabama – 57
8. Ole Miss – 47.5
9. Missouri – 47
10. Auburn – 42
11. South Carolina – 27
11. Tennessee – 27
13. Mississippi State – 24
All-SEC First Team Performers
Taliyah Brooks – Heptathlon
Daina Harper – 400 Meters
Nikki Hiltz – 1500 Meters
Lexi Weeks – Pole Vault
All-SEC Second Team Performers
Leigha Brown – Heptathlon
Desiree Freier – Pole Vault
Therese Haiss – 1500 Meters
Payton Stumbaugh – Heptathlon
Regan Ward – Steeplechase
Tori Weeks – Pole Vault
Taylor Werner – 10,000 Meters
Top Five Point Scorers
Daina Harper – 15
Nikki Hiltz – 15
Payton Stumbaugh – 14
Taliyah Brooks – 10
Lexi Weeks – 10
Saturday Results
110-Meter Hurdles
5. Payton Stumbaugh – 13.30
400 Meters
1. Daina Harper – 52.16
400-Meter Hurdles
6. Damajahnee Birch – 59.30
800 Meters
4. Nikki Hiltz – 2:06.09
6. Ceara Watson – 2:07.10
1500 Meters
1. Nikki Hiltz – 4:17.94
3. Therese Haiss – 4:19.29
6. Carina Viljoen – 4:23.64
5000 Meters
5. Valerie Reina – 16:18.06
7. Abby Gray – 16:19.19
17. Logan Bishop – 16:52.24 – PR
21. Sydney Brown – 16:57.67
22. Maddy Reed – 17:00.20
4×100-Meter Relay
7. Arkansas (Kiara Parker, Payton Stumbaugh, Daina Harper, Jada Baylark) – 44.31
4×400-Meter Relays
6. Arkansas (Kiara Parker, Daina Harper, Sunkietra McCallister, Ceara Watson) – 3:36.13
High Jump
11. Taliyah Brooks – 5-7
Triple Jump
19. Jada Baylark – 38-9
