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FAYETTEVILLE - Brady Slavens crushed a two-run homer to right field that helped secure Arkansas’ fourth all-time sweep of LSU on Saturday.
The swing gave the Razorbacks a four-run lead they hung on to for a 6-2 win over the Tigers, improving them to 7-2 against LSU since 2019. In the previous seven years, Arkansas was just 6-22 against the Tigers.
It took them four innings, but the Razorbacks finally put together a rally in the bottom of the fifth inning. After a Braydon Webb walk and Jalen Battles single, freshman Peyton Stovall collected an RBI on a fielder’s choice to tie the game at one run apiece.
A Zack Gregory walk later, third baseman Cayden Wallace hit a two-run single up the middle that gave Arkansas its first lead of the day. Slavens provided an insurance run by driving in Gregory with a sacrifice fly in the next at bat to give Arkansas a 4-1 lead after five innings.
Arkansas starter Jaxon Wiggins found himself in some trouble after LSU’s Dylan Crews drove in the Tigers’ second run of the day in the top of the sixth. Head coach Dave Van Horn went out to grab Wiggins and bring lefty Zack Morris in and he took care of business with a strikeout and line out to close the book on Wiggins.
Stovall kicked off the bottom of the seventh with a leadoff double and he was advanced to third by a Gregory bunt. Just one at bat later, Slavens crushed the ball over the right field wall to give the Hogs a couple of insurance runs and a 6-2 lead.
Morris took care of business for 2 2/3 innings and freshman Brady Tygart entered the game to shut the door on LSU in the ninth inning.
The win gave Arkansas its third weekend sweep of the season and just its second in conference play. The Hogs will still hold first place in the SEC West with an 11-4 conference record after this weekend.
Here are a few key takeaways…
Wiggins weathers the storm
From the first at bat, Wiggins found himself in a sticky situation. LSU’s Tre’ Morgan hit a leadoff single to start the game and just three batters later, the Tigers had the bases loaded with just one out. Wiggins showed no fear and earned a strikeout and groundout to escape the inning and strand three runners.
The second inning started just like the first, with the Tigers earning a leadoff single. After one more single from LSU’s Josh Stevenson, Dylan Crews hit an RBI double to tag Wiggins for his first earned run. After a mound visit from pitching coach Matt Hobbs, Wiggins escaped trouble once again with a fly out.
“He got out of a jam in the first, he got out of another jam in the second, only gave up one,” Van Horn said. “None of the so-called crooked numbers. Just kept slipping out of them and pitching his way out of them.”
