Road Hogs Battle Gamecocks in SEC Action
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Razorbacks are in the Palmetto State.
No. 1 Arkansas is on the road to face No. 11 South Carolina (24-10, 10-5 SEC) in a three-game conference series this week in Columbia, S.C. The action at Founders Park gets underway at 6 p.m. CT Thursday, April 22, on the SEC Network.
The Hogs, 30-6 overall on the season, are in sole possession of first place in the SEC West with an 11-4 mark in conference play. The unanimously top-ranked Razorbacks enter Thursday night’s nationally televised contest having scored double-digit runs in five of their last six games.
Schedule
Thursday, April 22 – 6 p.m. CT – at South Carolina – SEC Network – Listen – Live Stats
Friday, April 23 – 6 p.m. CT – at South Carolina – SEC Network+ – Listen – Live Stats
Saturday, April 24 – 2 p.m. CT – at South Carolina – SEC Network+ – Listen – Live Stats
Matchups & History
Thursday
Arkansas RHP Caleb Bolden (2-0, 4.63 ERA) vs. South Carolina RHP Thomas Farr (2-3, 3.28 ERA)
Friday
Arkansas RHP Peyton Pallette (1-2, 4.06 ERA) vs. South Carolina RHP Brannon Jordan (4-2, 3.15 ERA)
Saturday
Arkansas TBA vs. South Carolina RHP Will Sanders (6-1, 2.11 ERA)
The Razorbacks and Gamecocks clash for the 77th, 78th and 79th time in history this weekend. Arkansas leads the series, 42-34, and owns a significant advantage (22-12) in games played in Fayetteville.
The Hogs have won five of the previous six matchups but lost all three ballgames when the teams last met in Columbia during the 2016 season.
Tune In
Thursday’s series opener will broadcast nationally on the SEC Network with Dave Neal (play-by-play) and Ben McDonald (analyst) on the call. Friday and Saturday’s ballgames, meanwhile, will air via SEC Network+. Burch Antley will handle the play-by-play duties, with Kip Bouknight and Tim Hill providing analysis on Friday and Saturday, respectively.
Fans can catch all the action through the ESPN app on smartphones, computers and tablets or via Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.
The contests can also be heard on the Razorback Sports Network from Learfield/IMG, including locally in Fayetteville on 92.1 FM. Phil Elson will have the call from Columbia, S.C.
Radio Affiliates
Conway – KASR-FM 92.7
El Dorado – KELD-AM 107.1 (FM Translator)
Fayetteville – KQSM-FM 92.1
Forrest City – KXJK-AM 950
Forrest City – KXJK-FM 106.5
Fort Smith – KERX-FM 95.3
Little Rock – KABZ-FM 103.7
Marshall – KBCN-FM 104.3
Mena – KTTG-FM 96.3
Rogers – KURM-AM 790
Rogers – KURM-FM 100.3
Stuttgart – KWAK-FM 105.5
Texarkana, TX – KKTK-AM 1400
Undisputed No. 1
There’s no change at the top.
The Razorbacks led all six major polls released Monday, checking in as the unanimously top-ranked team in college baseball for week 10 of the season. Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, D1Baseball, NCBWA, Perfect Game and USA Today each put Arkansas atop their respective rankings for the second week in a row.
It is the fourth time that Arkansas is the undisputed No. 1 squad this year as well as the eighth consecutive week that the Hogs maintain the top spot in at least one of the six.
Sooieville Sluggers
Arkansas is college baseball’s leader in home runs. The Razorbacks have hit 70 homers in 36 games this year, eight more than any other team in the country this year. Old Dominion ranks second with 62 in 34 ballgames, while LSU, Texas Tech and Southern Illinois are tied for third with 52 each.
The Hogs’ astounding 1.94 homers per game is second in the country behind only Northwestern (1.96). The Wildcats have swatted 47 home runs in 24 games.
Two Razorbacks have blasted double-digit homers this season, including Matt Goodheart (11) and Brady Slavens (10). Goodheart, the reigning National Player of the Week by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and Perfect Game/Rawlings, swatted five dingers in four games last week.
Nationally Speaking
Dave Van Horn’s offense is a threat in more ways than one. Along with home runs, the Razorbacks lead the nation in base on balls (224) and runs scored (306).
Arkansas’ team slugging percentage (.519) is fifth best in the country and second best in the SEC. The Hogs’ team on-base percentage (.412), meanwhile, is 12th best in the nation and the best in the conference.
Be Kind & Have a Goodheart
Razorback slugger Matt Goodheart was named the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper National Player of the Week as well as the Perfect Game/Rawlings Player of the Week after powering Arkansas to a sweep of UA Pine Bluff as well as an SEC series win against Texas A&M.
Goodheart went 10-for-17 at the plate, slashing .588/.682/1.529, belting five home runs and driving in 10 runs in four games for the week. He had multiple hits in all four games, collecting at least one RBI in each, including multi-RBI efforts against UAPB and in the finale against Texas A&M.
His five-homer week featured a home run, including two against UAPB, in four consecutive games, which was the second time he has accomplished the feat this season.
For complete coverage of Arkansas baseball, follow us on Twitter (@RazorbackBSB), Instagram (@RazorbackBSB) and like us on Facebook (Arkansas Razorback Baseball).
