Round 3: Arkansas will host SEC rival South Carolina in super regional

Arkansas pitcher Kacey Murphy throws out South Carolina first baseman Madison Stokes Saturday, April 14, 2018, in the fourth inning at Baum Stadium.
Arkansas pitcher Kacey Murphy throws out South Carolina first baseman Madison Stokes Saturday, April 14, 2018, in the fourth inning at Baum Stadium.

— Arkansas tied a program record with 14 wins over Southeastern Conference teams at Baum Stadium during the regular season.

This weekend the Razorbacks will get a chance to win two more home games against an SEC team.

Arkansas will host South Carolina in the NCAA Fayetteville Super Regional beginning Saturday at 5:30 p.m. after the Gamecocks defeated North Carolina-Wilmington 8-4 on Monday in the championship of the regional in Greenville, N.C.

South Carolina also had regional wins over Ohio State and No. 12 national seed East Carolina. Arkansas, the No. 5 national seed, won its home regional with wins over Oral Roberts, Southern Miss and Dallas Baptist.

Arkansas is 3-1 against South Carolina this season. The Razorbacks won two of three games over the Gamecocks in Fayetteville in April, and also won 13-8 at the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala., on May 23.

"These guys have been pounding the ball and winning at home and winning on the road," Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said of South Carolina following the win in Hoover. "They're a dangerous team."

South Carolina (36-24) was the last visiting team to win a game at Baum Stadium, 3-2 on April 12. The Razorbacks failed to score four times with the bases loaded that night.

Arkansas (42-18) has won 13 consecutive home games since, beginning with two seven-inning victories over the Gamecocks on April 14 by scores of 2-0 and 3-0. Junior left-hander Kacey Murphy took a perfect game into the seventh inning of the doubleheader opener and redshirt sophomore right-hander Isaiah Campbell pitched five shutout innings in the finale. Arkansas second baseman Carson Shaddy hit a home run in each game to give the Razorbacks the lead.

Murphy pitched well again against the Gamecocks at the SEC Tournament. The Razorbacks led 10-1 before Murphy ran into trouble in the sixth inning and was taken out of the game after giving up a grand slam.

"There won’t be any mysteries or secrets," South Carolina coach Mark Kingston said of Arkansas following Monday's win. "They know us and we know them.

“We don’t expect it to be easy, but nothing has been easy for us all year. We’ll go in there and we’ll give it our best shot. Whoever makes the most pitches and gets the most big hits, and plays the best defense, that’s who will win.”

Arkansas will play a conference opponent in the super regional round for the first time since super regional play was established in 1999. The Razorbacks have won four of their six super regional matchups, including their last two in 2012 and 2015.

The Arkansas-South Carolina matchup will be one of three all-SEC super regionals this weekend. Mississippi State will play at Vanderbilt and No. 1 national seed Florida will host Auburn. South Carolina, Vanderbilt, Mississippi State and Auburn all won regionals as a No. 2 seed in the region.

Between 1999-2017, conference opponents played each other 11 times in the super regional round, most recently last season when LSU defeated Mississippi State.

Two SEC teams have played each other in the super regional round three other times, including in 2006 when Georgia defeated South Carolina.

Arkansas and South Carolina have played four times in the NCAA postseason, all coming at the College World Series.

In 2012, the Razorbacks defeated the Gamecocks 2-1 in Omaha, Neb., to break South Carolina's 22-game win streak in the NCAA Tournament, but the Gamecocks won the final two meetings by scores of 2-0 and 3-2, the latter of which was a winner-take-all national semifinal.

Arkansas defeated South Carolina 1-0 at the 1985 College World Series when the teams were non-conference opponents. The teams entered the SEC together for the 1992 season.

The Razorbacks lead the all-time series against South Carolina 40-33, including 20-11 in games played in Fayetteville.

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