Arkansas baseball – Page 31 – Syndication Server

Remember Jared Wegner? He’s back for Arkansas baseball

Arkansas outfielder Jared Wegner hasn’t played in a month. He’ll be back against Vandy as the Diamond Hogs seek to clinch SEC title.

You’ll be forgiven if you are a so-called Arkansas baseball casual and don’t quite remember Jared Wegner. The fly-by-night, I-don’t-pay-attention-until-the-NCAA-Tournament crowd might not know him.

But if you’re a Diamond Hogs fans – not even a hardcore one, at that – Wegner’s scheduled return Thursday against Vanderbilt has you excited.

The Arkansas outfielder, a transfer from Creighton, hasn’t played since mid-April after suffering a fractured thumb. At the time, he was the Razorbacks’ leading hitter in just about every category. Still, heading into the series opener against the Commodores, Wegner is still second on the team in home runs (12) by just one, third in RBI (44) by just one and he steals leads in slugging and on-base percentage.

Coach Dave Van Horn’s only question is where to plug him back into the lineup. The Razorbacks have been dynamite in his absence, taking first-place to Nashville. Arkansas is one game ahead of Florida and 1 1/2 games ahead of LSU in the West. The top four finishers in the SEC get double-byes at the SEC Tournament next week. The Hogs can’t finish any worse than fourth no matter what happens with Vanderbilt.

First pitch Thursday from Vandy is scheduled for 6 p.m. Expect Wegner in the lineup.

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Arkansas baseball vs Vanderbilt – Game 1: How to watch, stream, listen

Arkansas travels to Nashville for a three game series against Vanderbilt to end the season.

We’ve reached the last weekend of the SEC season, and the Diamond Hogs have another nationally-ranked matchup for the consecutive week.

Last week, Arkansas won the series after winning two games against South Carolina, the top team in the SEC East before the series. However, thanks to the Hogs, Florida is now the division’s leader.

Vandy is second in the east after being swept by the Gators last week.

The Hogs can claim the top seed in the SEC Tournament with a series win, one game ahead of the Gators. A sweep would be ideal and surely give them the top seed no matter what the Gators do. No matter what, the Hogs have to win at least two games this weekend if they want a chance at the top seed.

For Dave Van Horn, it’s bigger than the SEC title

Dave Van Horn hopes his team is eyeing something bigger than the SEC Championship.

The Hogs have a big matchup this weekend against Vanderbilt that will determine the “mythical” SEC regular season champion before the SEC tournament in Alabama next week.

For manager Dave Van Horn, the conference title is just a tiny detail in the bigger picture.

“(Our goals) do go behind that, but obviously, we want to win it,” Van Horn said Wednesday afternoon before the team left for Nashville. “I mean, it’s so hard to win. You can have a great team and be in fourth or fifth place at this time of year. Things have fallen into place for us with the guys that have made it happen.”

The SEC softball tournament had a similar situation happen when a lower seed in South Carolina played in the championship game after knocking off the hosting Razorbacks in the second round. Van Horn understands the SEC is the toughest conference, so it’s better to treat the tournament as an additive to the season and not the main thing.

“We’re going to do everything we can to win,” he added. “I’m sure Vanderbilt is going to do the same thing. I’m sure Florida is going to do the same thing. We’ll just see how it clears come Sunday evening and then go from there. We’ll try to continue to get better at the tournament and then get ready for the next weekend.”

“Our program is one that looks to the future,” Van Horn said Wednesday. “What I mean by that is, two or three weeks down the road, I hope we’re still playing.” – Dave Van Horn

If the SEC tournament is as unpredictable as the regular season, then the fans are in for a treat.

Peyton Stovall officially shutdown for the remainder of the season

Peyton Stovall will miss the rest of the season due to a torn labrum that requires surgery.

The injury bug is still nagging the Diamond Hogs.

Peyton Stovall will miss the rest of the season due to a torn labrum that requires surgery. The sophomore joins three other Razorbacks on the IR list, but he is the first position player to be ruled out for the season.

“I think it impacted it a lot, big-time on offense,” Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn said. “As a matter of fact, we think he hurt it swinging. There were a couple of pitches when he swung and missed that stood out when he grimaced big time. He remembers one of them, and that was a month and a half ago.”

Stovall missed the last two weeks of baseball, and the coaching staff thought rest would help, but the pain remained, which led to a deeper dive into the injury.

Stovall has been one of the best players in the Razorbacks lineup since stepping on campus, batting .292 as a freshman with a 995 field percentage. Unfortunately, his production has dropped this season, but it’s been a quirky season for everyone, not just Stovall.

To replace him, manager Dave Van Horn will lean on Peyton Holt. This is where Stovall’s injury might be such a bad thing for the Diamond Hogs, with Holt batting .333 compared to Stovall’s .253 average.

Hollan nabs national Pitcher of the Week award

Arkansas’ left-handed starter has been a workhorse during SEC play for the Diamond Hogs.

Hunter Hollan’s dynamite weekend had already earned him SEC Pitcher of the Week honors. Now he has a national one to go with it.

Arkansas’ left-handed starting pitcher was named pitcher of the week by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association on Tuesday.

Hollan pitched a complete game in the series clincher for the Razorbacks on Sunday against South Carolina. Hollan allowed just five hits and struck out 10 in Arkansas’ 5-1 win.

Hollan has been Arkansas’ workhorse during SEC play. He has started during all nine series – the only player on the staff to have done that – and has a 4-2 record with 49 innings under his belt. His stuff has been solid throughout, too, as Hollan carries a 4.41 earned-run average in the Diamond Hogs’ final SEC series of the season on the weekend at Vanderbilt.

An Arkansas sweep in Nashville would clinch a regular-season SEC title. At worst, if Arkansas is swept, the Diamond Hogs would still finish in the top four in the conference.

First pitch Friday is scheduled for 6 p.m.

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SEC Power Rankings: Diamond Hogs still at the top

As we approach the final weekend of the SEC season, Arkansas lands at the top of the SEC.

Since league play started, it’s been hard to find the true best team of the SEC.

Coming into the season, LSU seemed to be the consensus best team in the country, but they had some strange losses in the SEC and officially dropped to their lowest ranking in the coaches poll.

Tennessee, who started the season at no. 2 in the preseason coaches poll, has dropped down to no. 20 and fifth in the SEC.

Ole Miss, the defending national champs, only won six games in the SEC this year, placing them at the bottom of the barrel.

On the other end of the spectrum, we watched the rise of South Carolina, who dominated the SEC East, reaching as high as no. 4 in the coaches after starting the season not ranked.

As we come to the end of the season, despite injuries, they have found their groove and somehow found themselves at the top of the SEC.

Hunter Hollan named SEC Pitcher of the Week

Hunter Hollan pitched a gem on Mother’s Day, which landed him an SEC weekly honor.

The Southeastern Conference named Hollan the SEC Pitcher of the Week after having what could be the best pitching performance from a Razorback on the mound.

Hollan threw the first complete game in the SEC this season, striking out ten batters while only allowing five hits and one walk. After giving up a leadoff home run in the third inning, Hollans retired 19-straight batters. He threw for a total of 113 pitches in nine innings.

“Today I felt good,” Hollan said Sunday. “I felt good, but I’ll pay for it tomorrow.”

This is only the second time since 2016 an Arkansas pitcher threw a complete game against an SEC Opponent—Dominic Taccolini’s 10-inning complete game shutout against Kentucky.

Hollan joins righty Will McEntire as the other Razorback to be named the league’s best pitcher of the week. McEntire threw his own one-run complete game against Louisiana Tech on March 11.

Arkansas moves into tie for second in USA Today Sports coaches poll

Arkansas is tied for second with Florida in the USA Today coaches poll that came out Monday.

After a series victory over No. 7 South Carolina over the weekend, Arkansas vaulted into a share of second in the USA Today coaches poll.

The Razorbacks are tied with Florida for second, trailing Wake Forest, which received all but one first place vote.

In fourth is LSU, followed by Stanford in fifth.

Vanderbilt, Arkansas’ next opponent, is sixth, while West Virginia, Coastal Carolina, South Carolina and Clemson round out the top ten.

The ranking is the highest of the season for the Razorbacks, who began the year sixth. The lowest they have ever fallen was eighth.

Other SEC teams in the coaches poll are Tennessee at 19th and Kentucky in 20th.

The final poll of the regular season will come out next Monday before the SEC Tournament begins on Tuesday, May 23.

Josenberger’s return, Tygart’s health help Hogs in home stretch

The rest of the SEC should be on notice: Arkansas is getting healthier…and scarier.

With just one regular-season SEC series left, eyes now head toward to the postseason for the Arkansas baseball team.

Well, probably not the team itself, but its fans and collected media.

The Razorbacks beat South Carolina on Sunday, 5-1, to take the series two games to one. In doing so, Arkansas put itself into first-place in conference. Not just the Western Division, but the SEC as a whole. A sweep against Vanderbilt in the final series would lock things up.

Of course, a sweep against a perennial national powerhouse on the road is a tough ask. And even if the Diamond Hogs don’t finish as the regular-season champions, they won’t finish worse than fourth in the SEC. That designation will almost certainly be enough to earn a national seed when the NCAA Tournament is announced in a few weeks.

What’s scariest for opposing teams is that the Razorbacks are getting healthier.

Tavian Josenberger returned for the series against South Carolina and hit lead-off all weekend. Brady Tygart, a preseason All-American, pitched three innings and struck out four while only allowing one base-runner in the second game of the weekend.

Second baseman Peyton Stovall and outfielder Jared Wegner are still out, but coach Dave Van Horn anticipated the two should be good to go for the SEC Tournament barring any setbacks. Wegner was the team’s best hitter, alongside Jace Bohrofen, until he was hurt. Stovall provides Arkansas’ most significant experience at the high levels come tournament time.

So while a sweep would be dynamite for the Razorbacks, it isn’t necessary when it comes to projecting how the postseason will turn. The Diamond Hogs are looking scary, regardless.

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Razorbacks take fourth straight series from South Carolina

Arkansas can win its second SEC baseball title in three years thanks to a series victory over South Carolina.

Arkansas is in the driver’s seat to win the Southeastern Conference regular season baseball title.

Behind a complete game effort from freshman Hunter Hollan and timely hitting from John Bolton, Parker Rowland and Caleb Cali, the Razorbacks took down South Carolina on Sunday, 5-1.

The No. 3 ranked Hogs will trek to Nashville, Tenn. on Thursday to begin the final regular season series against Vanderbilt.

Arkansas has a half game lead over LSU in the Western Division, and a game lead over Florida for the overall crown.

Hollan threw 113 pitches and retired 20 of the final 21 Gamecock batters in order to end the game. The southpaw struck out 10 and only walked one.

One more victory will clinch 20 SEC victories for only the third time in program history, joining the 1999 and 2021 teams.

A SEC title would also be the third of the Dave Van Horn era, as he also won championships in 2004 and 2021.

The only thing the Gamecocks mustered was a third inning home run to left from Will Tippett.

Ben McLaughlin put the finishing touches on the contest with a home run to right center in the eighth.