Today’s game
NO. 1 ARKANSAS AT NO. 5 TENNESSEE
WHEN Noon Central WHERE Lindsey Nelson Stadium (4,283), Knoxville, Tenn.
RECORDS Arkansas 38-10, 18-8 SEC; Tennessee 39-12, 18-8 RADIO Razorback Sports Network INTERNET SEC Network-Plus
No. 5 Tennessee gave the top-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks a show of their own comeback magic Saturday to regain a piece of the SEC lead.
The Volunteers coughed up a three-run lead then rallied back themselves to win 8-7 on Max Ferguson’s three-run, walk-off home run against freshman Jaxon Wiggins with no outs in the ninth before a crowd of 3,101 at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Tennessee (39-12, 18-8 SEC) evened the series at a game each and tied the Razorbacks (38-10, 18-8) for the overall SEC lead with four games remaining.
Arkansas, the last Power 5 team in college baseball to lose its 10th game, had notched its 13th come-from-behind win in Friday’s 6-5 victory. The Hogs could not notch No. 14 after three relievers gave up a home run apiece in each of the last three innings.
“Just a crazy game, back and forth,” Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said. “We battled, we fought a little bit, got the lead, couldn’t hold it, and we’ll do it again [today].” Tennessee Coach Tony Vitello called the one-run games to open the series typical SEC fare.
“Call it inches, if you want, that separates the two teams or just a small margin,” Vitello said. “One run would be another way to describe it.
“But that is what these kids have signed up for and that is why there are more fans in our league than any other league, because that’s how it works and probably how it’s going to go [today], too.” The Razorbacks, who have won 15 consecutive series and all five rubber matches this season, will likely start right-hander Zebulon Vermillion (2-0, 4.70) or lefty Lael Lockhart (2-2, 4.81) in today’s noon finale against Tennessee right-hander Blade Tidwell (6-2, 3.71).
Ferguson was Tennessee’s hitting star, as his solo home run off Caleb Bolden in the seventh pulled the Volunteers within 5-4.
Jordan Beck stroked an opposite-field solo home run, his second of the series and 11th of the year, in the eighth inning off Ryan Costieu to make it 6-5.
Wiggins (3-1), aiming for his first save since March 28 at Mississippi State, got a bad break to open the ninth. Wiggins’ fastball on an 0-1 count jammed catcher Connor Pavolony, who reacted as if he’d hit it foul, but the ball flared over second baseman Robert Moore’s head for a hit.
Leadoff man Liam Spence worked an eight-pitch walk, leading to a meeting on the mound with Arkansas pitching coach Matt Hobbs.
Ferguson, whose solo shot cleared the scoreboard in right field, crushed the first pitch he saw from Wiggins over the right-field wall to send the Vols into jubilation.
Vitello was asked whether the Volunteers talked about bunting with Ferguson before the big blast.
“It was really about him doing what he thought he needed to do for us to win the game,” Vitello said. “And then [assistant coach Frank Anderson], as he does so bluntly … I think he used some curse words, told him to hit it over the bleeping fence or something like that. I think that’s how it went down.” Van Horn said the options for the ninth were Wiggins or Vermillion.
“Wiggins is a guy who has been closing games,” he said. “We had a chance to win the series right there, so he was the obvious guy.
“If we’d have brought in somebody else and it hadn’t gone good we’d have second-guessed ourselves. We went with a guy that had closed some games, had some saves, in some big games early.” Tennessee closer Redmond Walsh (4-1) gave up three hits and a run in his two-inning stint but picked up the win.
Arkansas scored a single run in the ninth off Redmond but it could have been more. Christian Franklin followed singles by pinch hitter Charlie Welch and Cayden Wallace with a smoking double that eluded a diving Drew Gilbert in right-center field. The ball would have easily scored Wallace from first base, but it caromed high off the artificial turf and over the wall for a ground-rule double. Moore grounded out to end the threat with runners on second and third.
“I think Franklin would have had a triple,” Van Horn said. “I don’t know. But we definitely would have scored another run, looking back at it. You know every run is precious at that time, and it would’ve been nice having a three-run lead going into the ninth.” Tennessee jumped on top 2-0 in the first inning off Peyton Pallette on Jake Rucker’s RBI single and Evan Russell’s sacrifice fly, then stretched its lead to 3-0 in the fourth b e fo re A rka n sa s b e ga n climbing back.
Tennessee left-hander Will Heflin no-hit the Hogs for the first five innings, but the Volunteers couldn’t keep Arkansas off the board in the final four innings.
Cullen Smith’s solid single to left broke up Heflin’s no-hitter to lead off the sixth inning. Braydon Webb followed with a home run over the left-field wall, his fifth of the season, to make it 3-2. Two outs later, Franklin hit a mammoth home run off a light standard in left-center field to tie the game.
The Razorbacks pulled ahead with a two-run seventh with a dose of small ball against the Vols’ bullpen.
Casey Opitz got the rally started with a ball up the middle that deflected off pitcher Kirby Connell’s bare hand for an infield single with one out. Jalen Battles stroked a double down the right-field line to make it 4-3. Cullen Smith’s perfect drag bunt up the first-base line moved Battles to third, and he scored on Braydon Webb’s bunt for another single.
Franklin was hit by a pitch to open the eighth, advanced to second on Matt Goodheart’s ground ball, and scored on an Opitz hot shot that the third baseman Rucker could not field.
Bolden pitched well in relief, allowing 1 run on 3 hits in 3 1/3 innings before giving way to Costieu with two outs in the seventh.
Box score
ARKANSAS AB R H BI TENNESSEE AB R H BI Webb, lf 4 1 2 3 Spence, ss 4 2 1 0 Wallace, rf 5 0 1 0 Ferguson, 2b 5 3 3 4 Slavens, 1b 5 0 0 0 Rucker, 3b 4 0 3 1 Franklin, cf 4 2 2 2 Gilbert, cf 3 0 1 0 Moore, 2b 4 0 0 0 Russell, lf 3 0 0 1 Goodhrt, dh 3 0 0 0 Lipcius, 1b 3 1 0 0 Opitz, c 4 1 1 0 Beck, rf 4 1 2 1 Battles, ss 4 1 1 1 Derkay, dh 4 0 0 0 Smith, 2b 3 1 2 0 Pavolony, c 4 0 2 1 Welch, ph 1 0 1 0 Scott, pr 0 1 0 0 Nesbit, pr/3b 0 1 0 0 TOTALS 37 7 10 6 TOTALS 34 8 12 8 Arkansas.................... 000 003 211 — 7 10 1 Tennessee.................. 200 100 113 — 8 12 2 E — Slavens, Rucker, Gilbert. LOB — Arkansas 7, Tennessee 6. 2B — Franklin, Battles, Spence. HR — Webb (5), Franklin (11), Ferguson 2 (9), Beck (11). SF — Russell. SB — Opitz, Pavolony. CS — Beck. ARKANSAS IP H R ER BB SO Pallette 3 1/3 6 3 2 1 2 Bolden 3 1/3 3 1 1 0 1 Costeiu 1 1/3 1 1 1 0 4 Wiggins L, 3-1 0 2 3 3 1 0 TENNESSEE IP H R ER BB SO Heflin 6 3 3 3 1 6 Connell 1/3 3 2 2 0 1 Sewell 2/3 1 1 0 0 1 Walsh W, 4-1 2 3 1 1 0 2 Wiggins faced 3 batters in the 9th.
WP — Walsh. HBP — by Heflin (Goodheart), by Sewell (Franklin). Umpires — Home: Cricks; First: Hodges; Second: Ransom; Third: Cannon. Time — 2:54. Attendance — 3,101.
SEC standings
WEST DIVISION
CONF. ALL
Arkansas................... 18-8 38-10
Mississippi State............. 17-10 36-13 Mississippi...................... 15-11 35-15 Alabama.......................... 12-13 29-18 LSU.................................. 10-16 31-19 Texas A&M ....................... 8-18 28-24 Auburn............................. 7-19 21-25
EAST DIVISION
CONF. ALL
Tennessee......................... 18-8 39-12 Vanderbilt......................... 17-8 36-11 Florida............................... 17-9 35-15 South Carolina................ 14-12 30-18 Kentucky.......................... 11-15 27-19 Georgia............................ 11-15 28-20 Missouri........................... 7-20 14-33
SATURDAY’S GAMES
(5) Tennessee 8, (1) Arkansas 7
(21) S. Carolina 9, Kentucky 0 Missouri 16, (3) Mississippi St. 8 Alabama 6, LSU 5 Auburn 9, Texas A&M 1
(2) Vanderbilt 13, (14) Mississippi 2
(7) Florida 9, Georgia 2
Today’s game
NO. 1 ARKANSAS AT NO. 5 TENNESSEE
WHEN Noon Central WHERE Lindsey Nelson Stadium, Knoxville, Tenn.
RECORDS Arkansas 38-10, 18-8 SEC; Tennessee 39-12, 18-8 STARTING PITCHERS Arkansas: TBA; Tennessee: RHP Blade Tidwell (6-2, 3.71) RADIO Razorback Sports Network INTERNET SEC Network-Plus SHORT HOPS Charlie Welch’s single to open the ninth inning made the freshman 4 for 8 as a pinch hitter. … Neither starter — Arkansas’ Peyton Pallette nor Tennessee’s Will Heflin — has posted a conference victory. … Tennessee’s two runs in the first inning gave it a 56-19 edge over opponents in that frame. … The Razorbacks were no-hit through five innings for the second time in two weeks. LSU’s Landon Marceaux had a no-hitter through six innings on April 30 in a 7-0 Razorbacks’ win behind Patrick Wicklander and Kevin Kopps. … Coach Dave Van Horn said Kopps was unavailable Saturday after throwing 66 pitches for a win Friday, and his availability today will be determined this morning.
THE WEEK AHEAD
TODAY at Tennessee, noon MONDAY Off TUESDAY Off WEDNESDAY Off THURSDAY Florida, 6 p.m. (SEC Network) FRIDAY Florida, 7 p.m. (SEC Network) SATURDAY Florida, 2 p.m.