Hogs Stage 3-2 Comeback Win

Pitching four hitless innings in his college debut last week has earned Ryne Stanek a start against Utah today.
Pitching four hitless innings in his college debut last week has earned Ryne Stanek a start against Utah today.

— Solid pitching has been Arkansas’ key ingredient early in the 2011 season.

The No. 20 Razorbacks sprinkled in some timely hitting Friday, producing the recipe for success in a 3-2 win over Utah at Baum Stadium.

Bo Bigham’s RBI single to score Matt Reynolds in the bottom of the eighth inning gave Arkansas the lead for good. It was the first come-from-behind win of the young campaign for the Razorbacks (4-0), who trailed a game for the first time this season.

“We had to earn this one,” Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said. “That was a baseball game right there – a classic. There was some good pitching and timely hitting. They were one big hit from scoring a couple more. With us, you could tell it was going to come down to a single or a bunt and somebody getting a big hit with one or two outs, and that’s what happened.”

The big hits allowed Arkansas to overcome a sixth inning hiccup on the mound. Freshman starter Ryne Stanek entered the inning with a no-hitter and with two outs looked like he might have the same leaving the frame. But Utah rallied for three straight hits, the final of which by C.J. Cron tied the game 1-1.

“I just made a mistake with two strikes,” Stanek said. “I threw a few too many fastballs and they kind of figured out that I was beating them with the fastball early, and they made an adjustment.”

Stanek was replaced on the mound by sophomore DJ Baxendale, who started last Friday’s game against Delaware State. The sophomore didn’t fare much better against his first batter, Shaun Cooper, whose RBI single gave the Utes a 2-1 lead.

Baxendale, who earned his second win in eight days, got out of the half-inning on a Cody Guymon ground out. That loomed large when Kyle Robinson led off the bottom of the sixth with a stand-up triple and scored on a Bo Bigham RBI to tie the game at 2-2.

“It was a huge momentum shift,” Baxendale said. “We just got back in it and tied it up. I just felt like I needed to go back out there and throw a lot of strikes and let my defense work for me.”

Baxendale settled in from then on. He worked around a lead-off single in the seventh and picked off a runner to end the eighth, allowing for Bigham’s go-ahead RBI in the bottom half of the inning. Baxendale finished the game allowing three hits in 3 1/3 innings on the mound, striking out five batters.

Stanek went 5 2/3 innings in his first career start, allowing two runs on three hits and a walk, while striking out two.

“It was good to see Ryne Stanek come out and pitch the way he did and give us a chance to win the game,” Van Horn said. “We decided to pitch DJ out of the pen and it worked out. You know we could probably flip-flop it; I think Ryne could come in and close games. They both might be starting before it’s over with.

“We’re just trying to figure this out and get some guys on the mound, and hopefully get something settled in a little bit more by the time we play Auburn (in the conference opener).”

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