Advertisement
Premium content
PREMIUM CONTENT
Published Mar 7, 2020
Hogs snap skid as bats explode in blowout win over South Alabama
circle avatar
Andrew Hutchinson  •  HawgBeat
Managing Editor
Twitter
@NWAHutch

Sign up for an annual HawgBeat subscription and get $50 for Arkansas gear on the Rivals Fan Shop ––> details

FAYETTEVILLE — Dave Van Horn knew his offense would starting driving in runs, but even he couldn’t have predicted Arkansas’ onslaught Saturday afternoon.

The Razorbacks jumped on South Alabama early and finished with season highs in runs (15) and hits (18), cruising to a 15-2 win that evened their series with the Jaguars at Baum-Walker Stadium.

After struggling to get timely hits the past week, Arkansas went 10 for 23 (.435) with runners in scoring position. That helped it put together three innings with at least three runs - something it failed to do even once over the previous four games.

“We hit the ball hard all day,” Van Horn said. “I mean, you turn that wind around a little bit, we would have hit a few balls out of the park, a few more.

“Really proud of our offense - kind of relentless, getting the pitchers’ pitch counts up, fouling off pitches. … I felt every inning we hit we were a threat and that was really good to see.”

The victory snapped Arkansas’ five-game losing streak, which was tied for the third longest of Van Horn’s tenure in Fayetteville and its longest since ending the 2016 season with 13 straight losses.

On top of their bats breaking out, the Razorbacks also got a quality start from Caleb Bolden, solid relief pitching and didn’t commit any errors in the field.

“The stuff we’ve been doing the past couple of games is not Arkansas baseball,” Bolden said. “What we did today is definitely Arkansas baseball, so if we can keep that up we’ll definitely be in good shape.”

Arkansas can clinch the series in the Game 3 rubber match, which was moved up an hour to noon CT Sunday to accommodate South Alabama’s travel plans.

Junior right-hander Kole Ramage (1-1, 3.18 ERA) will start for the Razorbacks and face junior right-hander JoJo Booker (1-1, 4.85 ERA) for the Jaguars.

The game will be streamed on SEC Network-Plus, meaning it can be watched online on ESPN3.com or on the WatchESPN app.

Bench Delivers for Hogs

All but one of Arkansas’ starters notched a hit in the win, but more impressively, so did three players off the bench.

The most significant of the group was Cole Austin, who had been the Razorbacks’ starting first baseman until being benched following a conversation with Van Horn earlier in the week.

“We basically sat down and talked about how I’ve been performing offensively,” Austin said. “We made a lot of adjustments this week with Coach Thompson in the cage and just kind of cleaned some stuff up.”

After Zack Gregory struck out twice on six total pitches, he entered the game in the top of the fourth. In his first at bat, he fouled off seven pitches in a 12-pitch battle that resulted in a hit by pitch.

Later in the game, Austin added a two-run home run into the Hog Pen and a long single. He scored all three times he reached base, too. Afterward, Van Horn said he’d be back in the starting lineup Sunday because he “deserves it.”

“The thing about Austin is he didn’t pout around,” Van Horn said. “He’s been coming in early, working late, working with the coaches, getting extra (work)… He’s just trying to get better.”

Other than freshman Dominic Tamez, who grounded into a double play in the seventh, Arkansas’ pinch hitters also played well. In the eighth inning, sophomore Curtis Washington Jr. hit a two-run home run into the left field bullpen and freshman Bryce Matthews followed with a double to left-center in the next at bat.

It was both players’ first hits of the season. For Matthews - who missed the first few weeks of the season with an elbow injury - it was his first career hit. He made his debut Friday, but flied out to deep right-center.

Subscribe to read more.
Unlock Premium news from the largest network of experts.
Say your piece in exclusive fan communities.
Dominate with stats, athlete data, Rivals250 rankings, and more.
Go Big. Get Premium.Log In