No. 25 Razorbacks Travel to Cowgirl Classic for Four Games

Jacob Pavilack February 19, 2021

Game Notes Live Stats (All Games) Live Stream - Saturday ($) Live Stream - Sunday ($)

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – In its second weekend of competition, No. 25 Arkansas travels to the Cowgirl Classic hosted by McNeese in Lake Charles, La. to play a doubleheader on both Saturday, Feb. 20 and Sunday, Feb. 21.

A noon first pitch against Louisiana Tech (1-1) on Saturday kicks off the event, with the second game of the day at 2:30 p.m. against McNeese (2-2). On Sunday, Arkansas (0-1) takes on the Lady Techsters at 10 a.m. before wrapping up the weekend against the Cowgirls at 12:30 p.m.

A video stream will be provided by McNeese for a subscription fee.

Last Time Out

Due to cold temperatures, the Razorbacks were only able to play one of their five scheduled games at the Best on the Bayou Classic in Monroe, La. last week in the season’s inaugural weekend. Then-No. 21 Arkansas rallied from a fourth inning seven-run deficit, reclaiming a one-run lead in the top of the seventh, but could not hold on falling to No. 10 Oklahoma State, 12-11, in the season opener on Thursday, Feb. 11. Infielder Braxton Burnside powered the offense with her third career two-homer game, and first in an Arkansas jersey, collecting four RBI. The Hogs scored seven runs in the sixth inning with Burnside’s three-run homer giving Arkansas an 11-10 lead. OSU used a double and a sacrifice fly to take a 12-11 lead in the top of the seventh which it would not relinquish. Arkansas drew 11 walks in the game, tied for the seventh-best single-game mark in program history. Outfielder Linnie Malkin (4), infielder Audrie LaValley (3) and outfielder Hannah McEwen (3) each set career highs in walks. Infielder Danielle Gibson was 3-for-5 with a pair of doubles.

About the Razorbacks

All but one starter returns from the 2020 COVID-19 shortened campaign where the team finished 19-6 (1-2 SEC) and earned a No. 19 final ranking in the NFCA Coaches’ Poll. The Hogs hit .317 as a team, which ranked seventh in the SEC and 34th in the country. Posting an average of 6.16 runs per game, the offense placed sixth in the league and 33rd nationally. The team’s best win of the year was a 1-0 triumph at No. 9 Alabama in the SEC opener, the program’s first win in Tuscaloosa since 2000. During non-conference Arkansas won 10 games in a row, the program’s second such streak in the last decade.

The Pitching Staff is Back

Arkansas returns all 156.0 innings pitched and 173 strikeouts from the shortened 2020 season. Autumn Storms (72.2 IP, 1.16 ERA), Jenna Bloom (43.2 IP, 3.21 ERA), Mary Haff (37.0 IP, 1.89 ERA) and Rylin Hedgecock (2.2 IP, 2.62 ERA) all come back from a staff that ranked 16th nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.84) and 26th in earned run average (1.93). Haff (1.69) and Storms (2.07) are third and fifth respectively in school history for career ERA. Haff is also the program’s career leader with a .177 opponent batting average. Storms ranks third with 59 career wins and needs 14 wins to tie Heather Schlichtman (2001-04) for the all-time program lead at 73 victories. Haff, Bloom and true freshman Lauren Howell all earned innings against No. 10 Oklahoma State.

Razorbacks in the Polls

Following Week 1 of the season, Arkansas has garnered a No. 25 ranking by the ESPN.com/USA Softball Poll and a No. 20 spot on the USA Today/NFCA Coaches’ Poll. 33 of the last 34 releases of the USA Today/NFCA Coaches’ Poll have placed the Hogs inside the top 25.

Trio of Hogs Named Preseason All-SEC

Braxton Burnside, Hannah McEwen and Autumn Storms were named to the 14th annual Preseason All-SEC team. McEwen and Storms are on the team for the second consecutive year, while Burnside is making her first appearance. Alongside LSU (4) and Alabama (3), the Razorbacks are one of only three squads with three or more players appearing on the team. Arkansas was picked to finish sixth in the SEC Preseason Coaches’ Poll.

#HogHits

Against No. 10 Oklahoma State, Burnside become the first Razorback to record a multi-homer game since Ashley Diaz in 2019 at UTA. Gibson also collected two doubles, the first for a Hog since Hannah McEwen in 2019 versus Boston U.
Joining Howell, true freshmen Cally Kildow and Marlene Friedman made their collegiate debuts against the Cowgirls. Howell pitched 2.2 innings out of the bullpen, recording her first career strikeout.
Last season, the Razorbacks hit 26 home runs and went 13-1 when hitting at least one long ball in a game. When the Hogs did not hit a homer, they were 6-5.

Last Time in Lake Charles

Arkansas opened its 2019 campaign at the Cowgirl Classic going 5-0, and outscored its opposition, 32-4. The Hogs defeated McNeese (6-0), Samford (6-1), Lipscomb (5-0) and Campbell twice (7-3 and 8-0). That weekend, Gibson collected five hits and scored six runs, and McEwen posted four RBI, leading all current Razorbacks.

Opposition Position

Louisiana Tech – Arkansas is 5-1 all-time against the Lady Techsters, winning the last five meetings while scoring five or more runs in each of the previous four contests. The Razorbacks claimed the series’ last game, 9-1 in six innings, at Bogle Park on March 1, 2014.

LA Tech (1-1) split its first two games of the year at the Best on the Bayou Classic in Monroe, La. last weekend, the same tournament where Arkansas opened its season, however the two were not scheduled to meet. After a 3-2 win over in-state foe ULM on opening night, the Techsters fell to No. 10 Oklahoma State, 8-0, mustering only a single on Friday. Freshman infielder Caroline Easom shined against ULM, homering in her first collegiate at bat and scored two of the team’s three runs. The C-USA Preseason Coaches’ Poll tabbed LA Tech to a fifth-place finish in the six-team West Division.

McNeese – The Razorbacks lead the all-time series against McNeese, 3-1, and will meet this weekend for the third time in the last four seasons. Behind Haff’s complete-game seven strikeout one-hitter, Arkansas won the series’ last game, 6-0, on Feb. 8, 2019 in Lake Charles. Catcher Kayla Green (3-for-7, 2 2B, RBI) and McEwen (3-for-7, HR, 4 RBI, 2 R) are Arkansas’ top two active career hitters against McNeese, starting in two games.

Playing four times at the LSU Tiger Classic to open the year, the Pokes (2-2) enter the Cowgirl Classic with the most games under their belt of any team in the event. McNeese sandwiched a sweep of Kansas – winning two one-run games, 9-8 and 6-5 – in between losses to No. 5 LSU, 8-0 (6 innings) and Duke, 9-1. Jill Poullard led the Cowgirls with five hits and four runs scored on the weekend, while Cori McCrary clubbed a pair of homers in the second game against the Jayhawks. Pitchers Jenna Edwards and Saleen Flores each tallied a win. McNeese, which appeared in three straight NCAA Tournaments from 2016-18, was picked second in the 12-team Southland Conference’s 2021 Coaches and SIDs Preseason Poll.