FAYETTEVILLE — The No. 3 Arkansas baseball team (13-1, 0-0 SEC) earned a Game 1 run-rule victory in seven innings Friday afternoon over the Portland Pilots (5-9, 0-0 WCC), 20-3, at Baum-Walker Stadium.
Right-handed ace Gabe Gaeckle was solid in a much-needed bounce-back start, as he completed 5.1 innings with two hits, two earned runs, three walks and seven strikeouts on 87 pitches.
Only one pitcher, freshman right-hander Steele Eaves, took the mound in relief of Gaeckle, and he tossed 1.2 innings with four hits, one earned run and one strikeout.
Led by Wehiwa Aloy's and Brent Iredale's two-homer days, plus another multi-hit performance by Kuhio Aloy, the Diamond Hogs finished 13-for-31 at the plate with five home runs, six walks and seven punch outs.
Looking for a big bounceback first inning after struggling in recent games, Gaeckle didn't get his wish. The Pirates stuck first against Arkansas' ace with a two-out, two-RBI triple by Cole Katayama-Stall to take a 2-0 lead.
Arkansas matched Portland's scoring with its own in the bottom of the first, highlighted by, you guessed it, a Kuhio Aloy RBI double. Brent Iredale added a two-RBI double and Cam Kozeal capped off the scoring with an RBI groundout to hand Arkansas a 4-2 advantage.
After a hitless frame by Gaeckle, the Razorbacks exploded in the bottom of the second. The first run came on an error, as Ryder Helfrick (who reached via a hit-by-pitch) came around to score from third. With the bases loaded, Kuhio Aloy added two more RBIs to his total on a single. Home runs by Iredale and Nolan Souza pushed the lead out to 11-2 before Portland finally escaped the inning.
Gaeckle cruised in the top of the third behind a popup and two groundouts, and Charles Davalan led off Arkansas' half of the inning with a hit-by-pitch. He was driven in by Wehiwa Aloy, who smashed a good pitch off the center field wall to make it 13-2, Hogs.
The scoring cooled off in the middle innings, likely thanks to four Gaeckle strikeouts (including a three-strikeout top of the fifth), but the Hogs had some movement again in the bottom of the fifth.
Justin Thomas Jr. and Wehiwa Aloy started things off with a groundout and walk, respectively, before pinch-hitter Kendall Diggs tripled to right center to drive home two more runs. Following a Kuhio Aloy walk, Iredale mashed homerun No. 2 to score three additional runs. Arkansas finished the inning up, 18-3.
Freshman right-hander Steele Eaves came on in the top of the sixth in relief of Gaeckle, who left with one out recorded in the frame. Eaves did allow a run to come across on a single, but that was all Portland could muster against the youngster.
That run was taken back by Arkansas in its next time up to bat when Wehiwa Aloy launched his second home run of the day, a two-RBI moonshot, over the wall in left-center field to increase the Hogs' lead to 20-3.
Eaves took the mound again in the top of the seventh, and despite two Portland singles, he ended the game with a strikeout looking to clinch Game 1.
Up next, Arkansas will face Portland in Game 2 of the series on Saturday. First pitch for that game is set for 2 p.m. CT and it will air on SEC Network+.
