Join Mason Choate and Robert Stewart as they recap Arkansas’ gut-wrenching loss to Oklahoma State on Sunday night in Stillwater. The guys talk about where things went wrong and preview the regional final that’s set for Monday night at O’Brate Stadium.
STILLWATER, Okla. — Arkansas scratched and clawed to erase late deficits Saturday night, but a Cowboy four-spot in the 10th gave No. 7 Oklahoma State a season-saving 14-10 win over the Razorbacks.
It took the Hogs all of two pitches to get a run across the plate. Senior center fielder Braydon Webb doubled the other way, and he scored on senior designated hitter Brady Slavens’ RBI single.
The Cowboys responded with three runs in the top of the second, beginning with a leadoff homer off the bat of first baseman David Mendham. A walk and three singles produced two more runs, and sophomore right-handed pitcher Jaxon Wiggins’ day was done after just nine hitters. He was charged with three earned runs, allowed four hits, walked two batters and struck two out in an inning and a third.
Arkansas got a run back in the bottom of the second. Senior shortstop Jalen Battles reached on an infield single, advanced to second on another knock, moved up to third on a sacrifice bunt and score on Webb’s RBI groundout.
Oklahoma State upped the lead to three runs in the fourth with a two-run homer by second baseman Roc Riggio, his second in as many games against Arkansas.
The clubs exchanged leadoff bombs in the fifth, one from Cowboy designated hitter Griffin Doersching and one from Razorback third baseman Cayden Wallace. The sophomore hit his fifth solo shot in the last four games, bringing the score to 6-3. He drove in two more runs with a two-out single in the sixth, cutting the deficit to one.
Senior left-hander Evan Taylor relieved sophomore righty Will McEntire in the seventh, following 5 1/3 innings of relief. He paid for a leadoff walk and two throwing errors in the eighth, as an Oklahoma State sacrifice fly made it 7-5.
Webb scored from second on an errant throw in the eighth, bringing the Hogs back within a run, before graduate catcher Michael Turner sent Hog fans into a frenzy. His two-run homer put Arkansas on top 8-7.
Senior righty Connor Noland got the call for the ninth, but he was not nearly as effective as he was in the win over Grand Canyon. He allowed two hits and two walks, giving the Cowboys a 10-8 lead.
Down to their final out, the Razorbacks tied it at 10 on a two-run single by Slavens, but Oklahoma State exploded for four runs in the 10th to force a seventh game.
The Hogs and Pokes are set for one last tussle at 6 p.m. Monday. The winner will advance to the super regional round against the winner of VCU-North Carolina.
STILLWATER, Okla. — The Razorbacks trailed by five runs on separate occasions Saturday night.
They won by eight.
Arkansas turned a 10-8 deficit into a 16-10 lead in the eighth inning, going on to beat No. 7 Oklahoma State 20-12 and securing a spot in the Stillwater Regional final with two chances to clinch a super regional berth.
Senior designated hitter Brady Slavens hit the first of seven Arkansas home runs in the top of the first inning, a solo blast to right field. The Cowboys quickly responded, punishing freshman left-handed pitcher Hagen Smith for a leadoff walk, but they left the bases loaded and the score tied in a frame in which they made him throw 38 pitches.
Junior second baseman Robert Moore turned on 2-1 pitch for a solo shot to re-establish the Arkansas lead, but again, it did not last long. Another leadoff walk cost Smith another run, but it was senior left-hander Evan Taylor who surrendered the game-tying RBI double to Oklahoma State second baseman Roc Riggio. Smith recorded the same number of outs as he issued walks — four.
The Pokes took it to Taylor in the third inning with a two-run blast by third baseman Nolan McLean, and center fielder Caeden Trinkle chased him from the game with a one-out double. Riggio sent junior lefty Zack Morris’ first pitch deep to right field for a three-run dinger and a 7-2 Cowboy lead.
Arkansas began cutting into the deficit in the fourth with its third solo homer of the evening. Sophomore third baseman Cayden Wallace belted his third of the regional to dead center, making it a four-run contest.
Graduate catcher Michael Turner continued to eat into Oklahoma State’s lead with a two-out, two-run single into short left-center that brought the score to 7-5.
The Cowboys chased Morris and tagged senior right-hander Kole Ramage for three consecutive two-out singles in the sixth. Four knocks turned into three runs and 10-5 advantage.
The Hogs responded with three runs of their own in the seventh. Turner collected his third RBI of the game and sixth of the tournament with a two-out solo home run, the fourth of the night for Arkansas. Graduate right fielder Chris Lanzilli doubled and scored on Moore’s second longball of the night, which made it 10-8.
And then the chaos began.
Freshman first baseman Peyton Stovall got the line moving in the eighth with a leadoff single. Two hit batters later, the Cowboys turned to McLean to pitch, but he had no control on the mound. He issued three walks and hit another batter, and the Razorbacks went from two behind to two ahead.
Right-hander Trevor Martin came in from the bullpen, and senior shortstop Jalen Battles sent his first pitch to left field for a grand slam and a 16-10 lead.
The Cowboys tagged freshman righty Brady Tygart for two runs in the eighth to make it 16-12, but Arkansas roared back with four in the ninth, courtesy of Lanzilli’s three-run dinger, the seventh of the game for the Razorbacks. Moore scored on a throwing error to cap the scoring off, and sophomore right-hander Will McEntire closed the door in the ninth to send the Hogs to the regional final.
Arkansas will meet the winner of Oklahoma State-Missouri State at 6 p.m. Sunday. Starting pitchers and broadcast information have yet to be released. With a win, the Hogs will clinch a spot in the super regional round, but a loss would send them to a winner-take-all game Monday night.
Join Mason Choate and Robert Stewart as they recap Arkansas’ 7-1 win over Grand Canyon LIVE from O’Brate Stadium Stillwater. The guys break down how everything happened and what things looked like for the Hogs.
STILLWATER, Okla. — Arkansas snapped a four-game skid Friday afternoon at Oklahoma State’s O’Brate Stadium, handing the Grand Canyon Antelopes a decisive 7-1 loss.
The Razorbacks moved into the winners’ bracket of the Stillwater Regional, guaranteeing at least two more games in their 2022 season.
Sophomore third baseman Cayden Wallace began his big day at the plate with a two-out home run in the bottom of the first, giving Arkansas a 1-0 lead.
After a strike-’em-out, throw-’em-out double play in the bottom of the second, Arkansas put it to Grand Canyon freshman hurler Daniel Avitia.
Six consecutive hitters reached base, including senior center fielder Braydon Webb, whose RBI single made it 2-0. Two batters later, Wallace was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, and graduate catcher Michael Turner drove in two runs with a single to center, chasing Avitia after just five outs.
Right fielder Tayler Aguilar got the Antelopes on the scoreboard in the top of the fourth with a leadoff homer against senior right-handed pitcher Connor Noland, but that was the lone blemish on the Razorback ace’s stat line. In seven innings, he allowed six hits, walked three hitters and struck out four.
Wallace went yard again with two outs in the bottom of the fourth, re-establishing the five-run cushion, and Turner stretched the lead to six runs with an RBI single in the sixth. The two sluggers combined to go 5-8 with six RBIs.
Senior right-hander Kole Ramage took over on the mound to begin the eighth inning, and he retired six of the eight batters he faced to finish things off.
Missouri State is set to meet No. 7 Oklahoma State at 6 p.m. Friday. The Antelopes will take on the loser of that contest in an elimination game at noon Saturday, and the Razorbacks will get the winner at 6 p.m. Saturday.
STILLWATER, Okla. — Arkansas’ road to Omaha begins at O’Brate Stadium.
The second-seeded Hogs open the NCAA Stillwater Regional against No. 3 seed Grand Canyon on Friday.
First pitch between the Hogs and Lopes is set for noon on SEC Network.
Arkansas is on the road in the postseason for the first time since the 2015 campaign.
The Razorbacks also traveled to Stillwater that year for an NCAA Regional before punching their ticket to their eighth College World Series appearance in program history.
Friday
Game 1: Arkansas vs. Grand Canyon – Noon (SEC Network)
Game 2: Oklahoma State vs. Missouri State – 6 p.m. (ESPN+)
Saturday
Game 3: Loser G1 vs. Loser G2 – Noon (TV TBD)
Game 4: Winner G1 vs. Winner G2 – 6 p.m. (TV TBD)
Sunday
Game 5: Winner G3 vs. Loser G4 – Noon (TV TBD)
Game 6: Winner G4 vs. Winner G5 – 6 p.m. (TV TBD)
Monday
Game 7: Winner G6 vs. Loser G6 (if necessary) – 6 p.m. (TV TBD)
Matchups
Game 1
Grand Canyon RHP Daniel Avitia (8-4, 3.59 ERA) vs. Arkansas RHP Connor Noland (5-5, 4.07 ERA)
On the Air
Lowell Galindo (play-by-play) and Troy Eklund will have the call for the entire NCAA Stillwater Regional on the SEC Network.
All of Arkansas’ games in the NCAA Stillwater Regional with Phil Elson and Bubba Carpenter can also be heard on HitThatLine.com and ESPN Arkansas 95.3 in the River Valley, 96.3 in Hot Springs and 104.3 in Harrison-Mountain Home.
With A Win …
• The winner of Friday’s game between Arkansas and Grand Canyon advances to play the winner of host and No. 1 seed Oklahoma State vs. No. 4 seed Missouri State at 6 p.m. Saturday.
• The losers of Friday’s contests play at noon Saturday in an elimination game.
• With three wins this weekend, Arkansas can advance to its 10th NCAA Super Regional in history and clinch a spot in the super regional round for the fourth time in as many postseasons.
Tournament Tested
• Arkansas head baseball coach Dave Van Horn has led the Hogs to their 18th NCAA Tournament berth in his 20th season at the helm of the program.
• Under Van Horn, the Razorbacks are 61-41 overall in the NCAA Tournament with six trips to the College World Series.
Getting you ready for Hogs in Stillwater, CFB, MLB and more!
Guest- Nick Schmidt
We’re LIVE at Granny’s Kitchen at 701 S Main St in Stillwater until 11:30 am!
Guest- Aaron Torres
Tye and Tommy get you ready for the Stillwater Regional, talk Pitt’s new contract, SEC meetings and more. Guests Charlie Boyce, Brandon Marcello and Phil Elson.
Can Dave Van Horn manage to turn Hogs around and Sam Pittman’s new contract announced Thursday morning.
HitThatLine.com is the website for ESPN Arkansas. Listen at 99.5 in Fayetteville, 95.3 FM in Fort Smith and the River Valley, 96.3 FM in Hot Springs and 104.3 FM in Harrison.
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