Arkansas Returns to Bogle Park for Wooo Pig Classic

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The No. 11/12 Arkansas Razorbacks look to build off an impressive 14-1 start when they return home for the Wooo Pig Classic this weekend at Bogle Park, where they will host Iowa, Illinois and Missouri State.

The Hogs will open play at Bogle Park on Friday when they face Iowa (3 p.m.) and Illinois (5:30 p.m.) and will play both of those teams again at the same times on Saturday before concluding the weekend with Missouri State on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. The Razorbacks’ games on Saturday and Sunday will be televised on SEC Network+ with Shawn Murnin on play-by-play both days. JB Brazeal (Saturday) and former Razorback Hannah McEwen (Sunday) will serve as the color analysts.

LEADING OFF

• The Arkansas Razorbacks are off to a program record 14-1 start this season and have earned run-rule victories in 10 games. The Hogs also started 14-1 in 2017 and 2018, all three 14-1 starts have come under head coach Courtney Deifel’s guidance.
• Arkansas has outscored opponents 129-25 this season. The Hogs are coming off a 4-1 showing at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic last weekend that saw them defeat Rutgers (10-0, 5 inn.), Cal State Fullerton (10-0, 5 inn.), Loyola Marymount (6-2) and Baylor (8-0, 5 inn.) while falling to No. 4 UCLA (9-1, 6 inn.).
• Arkansas has won its past eight home openers and is 8-1 in home openers under Courtney Deifel (since 2016). Arkansas owns an all-time record of 24-4 in season openers, with a 17-3 mark in Bogle Park since its opening in 2008.

PRESENCE IN THE POLLS

• Arkansas checked in at No. 10 in the Softball America Poll, No. 11 in the NFCA/GoRout Coaches Poll, No. 12 in the ESPN/USA Softball Poll and No. 13 in the D1 Softball Poll.
• The Razorbacks have been ranked in the Top 25 of the NFCA Coaches poll for a program-best 75 consecutive weeks dating back to the start of the 2020 season. Arkansas is one of seven programs nationally to have appeared in the Top 25 of every NFCA Coaches Poll since the start of the 2020 season, joining Oklahoma, Florida, UCLA, Oklahoma State, Alabama and Florida State.

HISTORY LESSON

• Arkansas and Iowa will be meeting for the first time since 2012. The Razorbacks hold a 5-1 all-time advantage over the Hawkeyes. Arkansas run-ruled the Hawkeyes (10-5, 5 inn.) in the last meeting on March 1, 2012 in Waco, Texas. Home runs by Devon Wallace, Clarissa Navarro and Sierra Bronkey highlighted the Hogs’ big day at the plate.
• The Razorbacks and Fighting Illini will be meeting for just the third time, with Illinois leading the series 2-1. The teams met twice during the Razorback Invitational in 2022, splitting the meeting with Arkansas winning the opening game 6-3 on Feb. 18 and Illinois taking the most recent matchup 8-6 on Feb. 20. KB Sides, Hannah McEwen and Hannah Gammill went yard for Arkansas in the loss.
• Arkansas and Missouri State will be meeting for the 34^th time on Sunday. The Razorbacks hold a 24-19 all-time series lead over the Bears. Arkansas won the last meeting between the programs 11-3 (5 inn.) on March 5, 2022 with Jenna Bloom earning her fifth win of the season in the circle while KB Sides, Hannah McEwen, Danielle Gibson and Linnie Malkin all hitting home runs.

PLENTY OF CONNECTIONS

• Missouri State Assistant coach Shelby Hiers played at Arkansas from 2014-2017 and served as a graduate assistant from 2018-2019 at Arkansas. She hit a game-winning grand slam during Courtney Deifel’s first victory at Arkansas, an 8-4 win over North Dakota State on Feb. 12, 2016, in Austin, Texas. Offensively, she owned a career .242 batting average with 17 home runs, 91 walks and 58 RBI. Defensively, Hiers recorded a .971 career fielding percentage and threw out 24 baserunners across her four years, including 15 in her senior season.
• Missouri State was the opponent for the Razorbacks’ inaugural home opener on March 1, 1997. The Bears won that game 4-0.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS

• Iowa is off to a 10-3 start this season and coming off a 4-0 weekend at the FIU Panther Invitational with a pair of wins over Lafayette (2-0, 8-4) and FIU (4-1, 6-3). The Hawkeyes are batting .289 as a team and own a 2.40 ERA in the circle, highlighted by junior right-hander Jalen Adams who owns a 7-1 record and 0.85 ERA in 41 innings pitched.
• Illinois owns a 7-6 record and went 3-1 at the Marucci Classic last weekend in Raleigh, N.C. The Illini defeated Central Michigan twice (12-8, 4-1) and Northern Colorado (12-4, 6 inn.) while falling to NC State (4-0). As a team, they are batting .275 with a 2.83 ERA in the circle.
• Missouri State is 1-9 this season with a 6-0 win over Tulsa back on Feb. 14. The Bears were off last week and have not played since Feb. 16. Missouri State is batting .231 as a team and has a team ERA of 10.53.

BRI HITTING MORE THAN JUST BOMBS       

• Senior first baseman Bri Ellis is one of the most heralded sluggers in the nation in 2025. She is batting .568 with nine home runs, 28 RBI, 53 total bases, 13 runs scored while posting a 1.432 slugging percentage and a .654 OBP. While her 57 career home runs are the most among all active D1 players.
• Ellis ranks among the Top 10 nationally in RBI per game (2nd, 1.87), total bases (3rd, 53), slugging % (3rd, 1.432), RBI (3rd, 28), HR (5th, 9), and on-base % (6th, .654). She currently owns a 12-game reached base streak and has struck out just once in 53 plate appearances.
• Through the first 15 games, her .568 batting average and .654 on-base percentage are program records (Min. 30 AB) while her nine home runs and 28 RBI rank second trailing only Nicole Schroeder who hit 11 and drove in 34 runs in 45 at-bats during the 2017 season.
• She batted .538 with two home runs, four RBI and seven hits during the Hogs’ 4-1 weekend at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic (Feb. 20-22).
• Through the first 10 games of the season, Ellis was the only player nationally to have equal or more RBI than at-bats through the first 10 games of the season since at least 2015 (Min. of 20 AB). Ellis has started 184 consecutive games dating back to game three of her freshman year at Auburn.

ROB CAN SPIN IT

• Robyn Herron owns a 5-0 record, 0.50 ERA and team-best 41 strikeouts in 28.0 innings pitched in 2025.
• Herron enters the weekend ranking 3rd nationally in hits allowed per 7 inn. (2.00), 9th in WHIP (0.68) and 10th in shutouts (2). She is one of only two pitchers nationally to rank in the Top 10 of those three categories, joining Maya Johnson of Belmont.
• She has carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning in each of her previous three starts. Most recently, she threw four no-hit innings while striking out six on her way to her fifth win of the season against Baylor (Feb. 22).
• On Feb. 20, Herron spun a complete-game one-hit shutout against Cal State Fullerton while carrying a no-no to the fifth and final inning.
• On Feb. 17, Herron threw the 12th no-hitter in program history in a 10-0 (5 inn.) win over ULM. She struck out a season-high 11 batters during her no-hit performance against ULM to improve to 3-0 on the season. The southpaw struck out the side to open and end the game. Only three ULM batters reached base during the contest, two by way of walks in the second and fourth inning, respectively, in addition to a dropped third strike with two outs in the fourth.
• She was one of just seven returning pitchers nationally who ranked in the Top 25 in ERA and Top 40 in shutouts during the 2024 season, joining Nijaree Canady (Texas Tech), Maddia Groff (Omaha), Karlyn Pickens (Tennessee), Kasey Ricard (Boston), Alivia Wilken (North Alabama) and Isabella Smith (Oklahoma).
• She joins Mary Haff (3) as the only Razorback pitcher to toss multiple no-hitters.
• Her nine 10+ strikeout games are the third-most in program history, trailing only Katy Henry (2005-08, 14) and Mary Haff (2018-22, 16).

RAKING AT THE PLATE

• Entering this weekend, Arkansas ranked among the nation’s leaders in numerous categories including doubles (5th, 33), RBI per game 7th, 7.73), runs per game (8th, 8.6), slugging percentage (5th, .668), home runs (8th, 24), sacrifice flies (2nd, 11), walks (9th, 71), and on-base percentage (9th, .471).
• Through 15 games, this year’s Arkansas team ranks among the top three in program history in slugging percentage (1st, .668), doubles (1st, 33), hits (T-2nd, 138), sacrifice flies (1st, 11th), HR (T-3rd, 24th), base on balls (T-3rd, 71) and hit-by-pitch (T-3rd, 15).
• Arkansas owns a .471 on-base percentage. Five of the Razorbacks’ three starters own an OBP of .500+, while seven of nine starters own an on-base percentage of .400+.
• In hitting coach DJ Gasso’s first season in Fayetteville, Arkansas struck out a program-low (COVID season not included) 192 times in 1,408 at-bats during the regular season, bettering the previous program record of 204, which was set in 2014 by 12.

HOME SWEET BOGLE

• Bogle Park was the place to be in 2024, as a program-record 97,744 fans walked through the gates. All 10 of Bogle Park’s all-time top 10 single-game attendance marks were also set in 2024. Arkansas played in front of home crowds of 3,000+ in 21 of its 27 regular season games at Bogle Park.
• Arkansas is just one of three programs to rank in the top five in single-season attendance every year since COVID, joining the likes of Alabama and LSU.
• The Razorbacks have ranked in the top three nationally in total home attendance in back-to-back seasons and have finished in the top five in national total attendance in each of their past five seasons at Bogle Park.
• On May 4, 2024, Arkansas broke its single-game attendance record, with 3,900 in attendance for game three vs. Ole Miss.
• In 2024, the Hogs have accumulated the third-highest cumulative attendance across NCAA softball (89,982). Arkansas averaged 3,333 fans per game.
• Since its gates opened in 2009, Bogle Park has welcomed 456,428 fans through the turnstiles. Of those 456,428 fans, 371,659 (81.42%) came during head coach Courtney Deifel’s tenure (2016-present).
• Since 2017, Arkansas is 151-41 (.787) at Bogle Park during the regular season.
• Arkansas is 180-71 (.717) at Bogle Park since Courtney Deifel took over the program in 2016.
• Bogle Park was recognized by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) as the Netting Professionals/NFCA DI Field of the Year in 2022.

HOME AT LAST

• Arkansas returns to Fayetteville after playing its first 15 games of the season away from The Hill.
• The Razorbacks’ Feb. 28 home opener is the latest by date since 2018 and tied for the sixth latest in program history.

RUN-RULING RAZORBACKS

• As of Feb. 24, Arkansas is tied for the national lead in run-rule victories this season (10) with Florida, Nebraska and South Carolina.
• It marked the sixth time in program history that Arkansas had accomplished 10+ run-rule wins, and this year’s squad was the fastest team to 10+ run-rule wins in program history.

For schedule updates and other news, go to ArkansasRazorbacks.com, or follow @RazorbackSB on X, Instagram and Facebook.