Scoring Recap: Auburn 8, Arkansas 6 (Game 3)

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The No. 1 Arkansas Razorbacks (19-2, 5-0) will go for the series sweep against the No. 23 Auburn Tigers (14-8, 0-5 SEC) on Saturday afternoon at Plainsman Park in Auburn, Alabama.

Arkansas earned a 1-0 victory over the Tigers in Game 1 on Thursday evening behind a 12-strikeout performance from left-hander Hagen Smith. The Hogs then outlasted Auburn with a go-ahead solo home run from freshman catcher Ryder Helfrick in the top of the ninth inning to pick up a 6-5 win Friday.

"Everyone was really happy for him," pitching coach Matt Hobbs said of Helfrick postgame Friday. "We’ve seen him do this. We’ve seen him do it in the fall, we saw him do it early in the spring. It’s been uneven for him, but it doesn’t mean the kid’s not super talented and that everybody on our staff has a lot of faith in him."

Hobbs was filling in as active head coach Friday in place of head coach Dave Van Horn, who was seemingly able to make the trip back for his daughter, Hollan, giving birth to triplets.

Hobbs, who serves as pitching coach, wasn't certain following Friday's game if Van Horn will be able to make it back to Auburn for Game 3 on Saturday.

"We’ll see," Hobbs said. "I don’t know. Honestly, I’ve just been texting with him, just briefly about the game. I don’t know that for sure. … It would be good for us if he was here."

Update - HawgBeat has since confirmed that Van Horn will indeed be back with the team Saturday for the third game of the series.

The Razorbacks are winners of 15 games in a row, and they will be looking to start 6-0 in SEC play for the first time since 2009. The Razorbacks began their 2009 campaign with an 8-0 mark in conference play, including consecutive sweeps of Florida and Auburn.

Arkansas holds a 55-49 all-time series lead over Auburn, including a 40-23 advantage in the Van Horn era. The Hogs have won now won six consecutive weekend series against Tigers, as well as eight of the last nine weekend series.

Unable to watch Arkansas-Auburn? HawgBeat has you covered with inning-by-inning updates, highlights, live scoring updates and more from the Hogs' 8-6 loss to Auburn.

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RHP Joseph Gonzalez pitching for Auburn

- Stovall strikes out swinging on a 91 MPH fastball

- Diggs grounds out to Hernandez at second base

- Aloy singles through the hole on the right side

- McLaughlin strikes out swinging on a high heater

0 runs, 1 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB

LHP Mason Molina pitching for Arkansas

- Weiss flies out to Wilmsmeyer in deep center field on the first pitch of the inning

- Irish grounds out to Stovall at second base

- Peirce strikes out swinging after an eight-pitch AB

0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB

Gonzalez still pitching for Auburn

- White gets hit by a pitch

- Souza grounds out to McMurray at first, White advances to second on the play

- Sprague-Lott gets hit by a pitch in a full-count

- Edmunson flies out to Stanfield in deep right center on the first pitch of the AB

- Wilmsmeyer strikes out looking on a 93 MPH fastball

0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB

Molina still pitching for Arkansas

- McMurray walks on four pitches

- Wright strikes out swinging on three pitches

- Maners grounds out to McLaughlin at first base on a bunt, McMurray advances to second on the play

- Stanfield flies out to Diggs in right field to end the frame

0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB

Gonzalez still pitching for Auburn

- Stovall grounds out to Hernandez at second on the first pitch of the AB

- Diggs lines out to Fabian at third

- Aloy grounds out to McMurray, who tosses it over to Gonzalez for the out at first

0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB

Molina still pitching for Arkansas

- Fabian strikes out swinging on four pitches

- Hernandez flies out to Wilmsmeyer in left center

- Weiss singles back to Molina on a bunt

- Irish reaches first on catcher's interference by White, Weiss advances to second

- Peirce fouls out to McLaughlin at first to end the threat

0 runs, 1 hits, 1 errors, 2 LOB

Gonzalez still pitching for Auburn

- McLaughlin walks on four pitches

- White lines out to Maners in left field

- Souza singles up the middle, McLaughlin advances to second on the play

- Sprague-Lott homers to left center, Souza and McLaughlin score (3-0)

- Edmunson walks on five pitches

- Wilmsmeyer flies out to Maners in left field

- Stovall singles through the right side, Edmunson advances to third on the play

- Diggs doubles down the left field line, Stovall advances to third, Edmunson scores (4-0)

Carson Myers relieves Gonzalez

- Aloy flies out to Maners in left field

4 runs, 4 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB

Molina still pitching for Arkansas

- McMurray is hit by a pitch

- Wright strikes out swinging on a 3-2 pitch

- Maners walks on five pitches, McMurray advances to second

- Stanfield walks on four pitches to load the bases

- Fabian hits an infield fly to McLaughlin at first base

- Hernandez flies out to Diggs in right field to end the frame

0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 3 LOB

Myers still pitching for Auburn

- McLaughlin walks on six pitches

- White strikes out swinging on four pitches

- Souza walks on five pitches, McLaughlin advances to second

- Sprague-Lott reaches on a fielder's choice, Souza out at second, McLaughlin advances to third

- Edmunson flies out to Maners in left field

0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB

Molina still pitching for Arkansas

- Weiss walks on five pitches

- Irish doubles to center field, Weiss advances and is thrown out at third by Wilmsmeyer in center

- Peirce grounds out to Stovall at second, Irish advances to third on the play

- McMurray singles to right field, Irish scores on the play (4-1)

- Wright flies out to Wilmsmeyer in center field

1 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB

Myers still pitching for Auburn

- Wilmsmeyer grounds out to Fabian at third

- Stovall singles through the right side in a 3-2 count

- Diggs triples to right center, Stovall scores on the play

RHP Parker Carlson relieves Myers

- Aloy grounds out to Weiss at shortstop

- McLaughlin flies out to Stanfield in center field

1 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB

RHP Cooper Dossett relieves Molina for Arkansa

- Maners homers to right field (5-2)

- Stanfield singles back to Dossett, reaches first base

RHP Gabe Gaeckle relieves Dossett

- Belyeu doubles to right center, Stanfield advances to third on the play

- Hernandez walks on five pitches to load the bases

- Weiss walks, all runners advance and Stanfield scores (5-3)

LHP Colin Fisher relieves Gaeckle

- Irish reaches on a fielder's choice, Weiss out at second base, Hernandez advances to third, Belyeu scores on the play (5-4)

- Peirce strikes out swinging on four pitches

- McMurray homers, Irish and Hernandez score (7-5)

- Wright grounds out to Stovall at second base

6 runs, 4 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB

Carlson still pitching for Auburn

- White singles to first base

- Souza flies out to Peirce in right field

- Sprague-Lott singles through the left side, White advances to second on the play

- Edmunson doubles to right field, Sprague-Lott advances to third, White scores (7-6)

- Wilmsmeyer reaches on a fielder's choice, Edmunson advances to third, Sprague-Lott out at home

- Stovall strikes out looking on five pitches

1 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB

Fisher still pitching for Arkansas

- Maners singles to Fisher on a bunt

- Stanfield singles to second base on a bunt, Maners advances to second on the play

- Green flies out to Wilmsmeyer in center field

- Hernandez grounds into inning-ending double play, Stovall to Aloy to McLaughlin on the play

0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB

RHP Will Cannon relieves Carlson for Auburn

- Diggs flies out to Maners in left field

- Aloy fouls out to Cannon after a six-pitch AB

- McLaughlin walks on four pitches

- White flies out to Peirce in right center on the first pitch of the AB

0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB

Fisher still pitching for Arkansas

- Weiss grounds out to Stovall at second base

- Irish homers to left center field (8-6)

- Peirce grounds out to Aloy at shortstop

LHP Stone Hewlett relieves Fisher

- McMurray strikes out looking on a full-count pitch

1 runs, 1 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB

Cannon still pitching for Auburn

- Souza strikes out swinging on three pitches

- Sprague-Lott flies out to Peirce in right center

- Edmunson strikes out swinging to end the game

0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB

Who: No. 1 Arkansas Razorbacks (19-2, 5-0 SEC) at Auburn Tigers (14-8, 0-5 SEC)

When: Saturday, March 23 at 2:00 p.m. CT

Where: Plainsman Park — Auburn, Alabama

TV/Stream: SEC Network+/Watch ESPN (Wiley Ballard and Gregg Olson)

Radio: Learfield Razorback Sports Network (Kyle Schassburger)

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Arkansas:

1. Peyton Stovall, 2B

2. Kendall Diggs, RF

3. Wehiwa Aloy, SS

4. Ben McLaughlin, 1B

5. Hudson White, C

6. Nolan Souza, DH

7. Jared Sprague-Lott, 3B

8. Will Edmunson, LF

9. Ty Wilmsmeyer, CF

SP: LHP Mason Molina

Auburn:

1. Cooper Weiss, SS

2. Ike Irish, C

3. Bobby Peirce, RF

4. Cooper McMurray, 1B

5. Carter Wright, DH

6. Mason Maners, LF

7. Chris Stanfield, CF

8. Deric Fabian, 3B

9. Javon Hernandez, 2B

SP: RHP Joseph Gonzalez

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