How to watch No. 9 Arkansas vs Eastern Illinois, starting pitchers, more
The No. 9 Arkansas Razorbacks (3-1) will play the first of a three-game series against the Eastern Illinois Panthers (3-0) on Friday afternoon at Baum-Walker Stadium in Fayetteville.
Following a 2-1 showing at the College Baseball Showdown, which was capped off with an 18-1 rout of No. 15 Oklahoma State, the Diamond Hogs took down Grambling in a dramatic 9-7 midweek victory on Tuesday.
The Panthers swept their Opening Weekend series against Florida A&M, capped off by six-inning showing from Sunday starter Ky Matthew Hampton, who gave up no runs, walked three and struck out five as part of a combined shutout of Florida A&M for the series sweep.
While Hampton shoved, Eastern Illinois' Friday starter struggled. Righty Blake Malatestinic gave up four earned runs on nine hits in 5 1/3 innings a week ago, and he will look to post a better line against the Diamond Hogs on Friday.
Arkansas will trot out sophomore left-hander Hagen Smith, who looked the part of an ace during last Friday's 3-2 win over Texas. Smith threw five innings of scoreless ball, giving up just one hit, two walks and striking out eight.
The 10-run rule will be implemented for all three games of the series. The policy stipulates that a contest shall be stopped after seven innings if one team is ahead by at least 10 runs, in accordance with NCAA playing rules.
With a win on Friday, Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn will record his 800th win as the Razorback skipper. He won his 700th game with a 10-9 victory over GCU on March 11, 2020, which turned out to be the final game of the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
HawgBeat will have you covered with live updates, stats, commentary and much more throughout the game, and you can check out details on how to watch, starting pitchers, starting lineups when they're posted, notes and more below:
How to Watch/Listen
Who: Arkansas Razorbacks (3-1) vs Eastern Illinois Panthers (3-0)
When: 2 p.m. CT Friday, Feb. 24
Where: Fayetteville, Arkansas — Baum-Walker Stadium
Stream/Online: SEC Network+ (Brett Dolan and Troy Eklund)
Radio: Learfield Razorback Sports Network (Phil Elson and Bubba Carpenter)
Arkansas Starting Pitcher
Sophomore LHP Hagen Smith
6'3", 215 pounds / Bullard, Texas / Bullard HS
2023 stats: 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 GP, 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 K
Arkansas Starting Lineup
1. Tavian Josenberger, CF
2. Kendall Diggs, DH
3. Jared Wegner, LF
4. Brady Slavens, 3B
5. Jace Bohrofen, RF
6. Ben McLaughlin, 1B
7. Peyton Holt, 2B
8. Hudson Polk, C
9. John Bolton, SS
Eastern Illinois Starting Pitcher
Redshirt Senior RHP Blake Malatestinic
5'9", 170 pounds / Indianapolis, Indiana / Cardinal Ritter HS
2023 stats: 0-0 6.75 ERA, 1 GP, 5.1 IP, 9 H, 6 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
Eastern Illinois Starting Lineup
1. Lincoln Riley, CF
2. Ryan Ignoffo, RF
3. Cole Gober, LF
4. Nicholas Rucker, 1B
5. Cade Zalewski, DH
6. Grant Lashure, C
7. Chris Worcester, SS
8. Robby Taul, 3B
9. Lucas DiLuca, 2B
Notes
~ Arkansas second baseman Peyton Stovall (thumb) will not be available for Friday's game, per a UA spokesperson. Infielder Harold Coll will also not be available.
~ Arkansas is ranked by all six major college baseball polls after the first weekend of the season:
D1Baseball – No. 9 (-1)
Perfect Game – No. 3 (+1)
NCBWA – No. 7 (-1)
USA Today Coaches – No. 6 (not updated)
Collegiate Baseball – No. 7
Baseball America – No. 11
~ Friday's game will mark the second contest of an 18-game homestand, the Hogs' longest stretch of consecutive games at home since 1982. That season, Arkansas played 22 straight games at George Cole Field to begin the year and finished the campaign with a 40-15-2 overall record.
~ Arkansas is 32-2 all-time against Eastern Illinois, including a 19-1 mark in the Dave Van Horn era. Dating back to 2016, the Hogs are riding a seven-game winning streak in the series. All 32 games between the Razorbacks and Panthers have taken place in Fayetteville. The most recent meeting came during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, when Arkansas swept the three-game series and outscored EIU, 27-5.
Some notes courtesy of Arkansas Communications