VLOG: Impressions from first day of 2018 spring drills
PHOTOS: 144 Pictures from First Day of Spring
HD VIDEO: 19 Minutes of Action Footage from Day 1
Observations from first day of spring drills
Notable Weight Changes on Arkansas' Updated Roster
WHAT: No. 5 Arkansas (7-2) vs USC (7-1)
WHERE: Baum Stadium, Fayetteville (Ark.)
WHEN: Friday 3 p.m. (CST), Saturday 2 p.m. (CST), Sunday 12:30 p.m. (CST)
TV: SEC Network+
As part of a thirteen-game home stand, Arkansas will take on USC in a three-game series at Baum Stadium this weekend. The two teams have only played one other time in their history, resulting in a 15-5 victory for USC in a 1996 regional.
Powered by multiple freshmen, the Razorbacks (7-2) found their offensive flow again, sweeping Dayton in two games by a combined 29-1. Arkansas kept the Flyers from recording a single extra-base hit in either game. In game two, the Hogs exclusively pitched freshmen, leading to 13 strikeouts and only 2 walks.
USC (7-2) is coming off a 32-14 sweep of Villanova this past weekend. The Trojans dropped their opening game to Utah Valley before reeling off their current win streak that includes two games against Utah Valley and a win over Long Beach State. USC defeated Loyola Marymount on Tuesday by a score of 3-2 for their seventh consecutive win.
Blaine Knight (1-0, 0.82 ERA) will take on USC righty Chris Clarke (1-1, 4.91 ERA) in Friday’s game. Isaiah Campbell (1-0, 2.00 ERA) will pitch for Arkansas on Thursday against left-hander Quentin Longrie (1-0, 8.00 ERA). The Sunday finale is expected to see Kacey Murphy (1-0, 0.00 ERA) battle the Trojans’ Kyle Hurt (1-0, 5.00 ERA).
Here are three things to know about the streaking Trojans:
USC’s bullpen poses a problem.
Trojan relievers have an ERA of 2.68 and have surrendered only 11 runs in 37 innings on the mound. Three of USC’s relief pitchers still haven’t given up a single run this year. Connor Lunn is perfect in save opportunities (4 for 4). Behind the rubber is a stellar defensive unit. USC only has one error in eight games and boasts the top fielding percentage in the country (.997).
Like Arkansas, the Trojans’ get contributions from young talent.
So far this season, eight different players have made their college debuts for USC. Freshman infielder Ben Ramirez is hitting .385 with 3 RBIs as is fellow freshman Jamal O’Guinn. Freshman Kyle Hurt, who the Hogs will face Sunday, is 1-0 on the year with 12 strikeouts in nine innings.
USC is highly efficient in two interesting categories.
The Trojans have five sacrifice flies this season, good for third in the Pac-12. Junior infielder Brandon Perez is first in the conference and second in the nation with three sac flies himself. Junior Lars Nootbaar leads the Pac-12 and is second in the country with 13 walks in eight games. The Trojans have walked 51 times as a team, putting them at 15th nationally. Last weekend, USC had a 10-walk inning (second most ever by a single team).
