BASEBALL
Hogs land transfer
FAYETTEVILLE -- Lael Lockhart, a former all-conference utility player at Houston, committed to play baseball at the University of Arkansas on Friday.
The 6-2, 215-pound native of Friendswood, Texas, will have one season to play for the Razorbacks after the NCAA restored a season of eligibility for baseball players that was lost because of the coronavirus pandemic. Lockhart, a left-handed pitcher and switch-hitter, was a senior at Houston this season and is joining the Razorbacks as a graduate transfer.
Lockhart was Houston's No. 1 starter for most of the past two seasons. This year, he posted a 1-2 record and 4.58 ERA in four starts before the season was suspended in March. In 172/3 innings, he struck out 19 and walked eight.
As a junior, Lockhart was 4-6 with a 3.58 ERA in 15 starts. He had 73 strikeouts and 31 walks in 83 innings.
Lockhart played mostly in the field for his first two seasons at Houston. He started 52 games as an outfielder and first baseman as a freshman in 2017, when he batted .276 with 11 extra-base hits and 27 RBI.
He batted .297 with 3 home runs, 17 doubles, 44 RBI and a team-high 46 walks during his sophomore All-AAC campaign.
-- Matt Jones
Razorbacks 2nd in attendance
FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas finished second nationally in attendance for the abbreviated 2020 baseball season.
The Razorbacks had an announced attendance of 116,387 for their 13 home games this year at Baum-Walker Stadium. Arkansas' per-game average of 8,953 trailed only LSU, which reported a per-game average of 10,296 for 13 games.
LSU was first and Arkansas was second in total and average attendance. Attendance figures are based on tickets sold, not actual attendance.
Arkansas has finished in the top five nationally in total attendance each year since 2005.
The Razorbacks sold a record 7,018 season tickets this year, according to figures provided during their season-opening series against Eastern Illinois. A season-high crowd of 12,006 was announced for a March 7 game against South Alabama.
-- Matt Jones
Sports on 05/02/2020