Arkansas sweeps past Rhode Island
FAYETTEVILLE - Trevor Stephan’s near perfect start following Barett Loseke’s winning relief should have personally victoriously finished the Arkansas Razorbacks’ Friday afternoon into night doubleheader sweep of the Rhode Island Rams before 3,748 at Baum Stadium.
Loseke’s 4 2-3 innings scoreless relief won the opener 5-2.
Unfortunately for Stephan, two Arkansas ninth-inning errors enabled down 2-0 Rhode Island to tie it 2-2 and remove Stephan as the pitcher of record before Luke Bonfield’s RBI single won it 3-2 for reliever Cannon Chadwick.
Bonfield’s hit scored Hunter Wilson.
Wilson had singled leading off the ninth and was bunted by Jake Arledge to second before Bonfield’s game-winner. Arkansas had lost a run on appeal that Alex Gosser did not touch third voiding his tally on Wilson’s single to left.
Stephan, Arkansas’ junior right-hander, threw a perfect game for 6 2-3 innings and should have had a complete game two-hitter accompanying career high 13 strikeouts without a walk.
He retired 19 consecutive batters before second baseman Carson Shaddy’s one-out error by followed by Chris Hess’ single past third in the seventh.
Stephan then retired Jordan Jewell on a fly to right and struck out Mike Corin. The whiffs just kept on coming with Stephan striking out two in the eighth and one in the ninth before Jordan Powell’s single and errors by Shaddy and shortstop Hess loaded the bases.
Reliever Chadwick struck out his first batter then got tagged for Mike Cronin’s game-tying two-run single before striking out Justin Jewell.
“I’m disappointed that Trevor didn’t individually get a win there,” Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said.
“The guy pitched a fantastic game and didn’t walk anybody in 8 1-3 and had 13 strikeouts. We had a chance to tack on a run early and didn’t do it. Just fortunate Bonny got the big hit.”
On not getting credited a victory for his best game, Stephan said, “That’s all right. We got the W.”
Gosser, the second game catcher, said Stephan’s “cutter was the ticket all night and if they started jumping on the cutter we would go back to the fast ball and kept them on their toes.”
Arkansas scored one in the third off starter Nick Johnson.
Wilson, beat out a leadoff infield single, took third on Jake Arledge’s single and scored on Chad Spanberger’s sacrifice fly.
Arledge homered over left leading off the second game’s fifth inning.
Playing a doubleheader Friday because of cold rain predicted today, Arkansas takes a 12-3 record and Rhode Island a 5-8 record into Sunday’s 1 p.m. conclusion to the 3-game series.
Loseke’s winning relief and solo home runs by Dominic Fletcher and Bonfield propelled Arkansas in Friday’s first game.
With Arkansas trailing 2-1, Loseke relieved ace starter Blaine Knight with one out and a runner at second in the fourth and proceeded to blank the Rams the final 4 2-3 on just three hits and no walks while striking out three.
Rhode Island started its All-American lefty, Tyler Wilson.
Wilson struck out four and yielded only one hit, Fletcher’s two-out home run in the second, but struggled with control.
He walked four, three in the fourth after a catcher’s interference.
The run-scoring walk to Jordan McFarland brought on reliever Blaise Whitman who left them loaded striking out Jaxon William and Jax Biggers.
Whitman ultimately was the hard luck loser walking McFarland in Arkansas’ two-run sixth. McFarland scored the tiebreaker from third when reliever Vitaly Jangols uncorked a wild pitch. Arledge singled the other one home.
Bonfield’s home run greeted reliever Connor Romano in the seventh.
The Rams scored their two off Knight during a bizarre fourth inning that included an appeal, not granted that Rhode Island’s Jordan Powell didn’t touch third on Hess’ RBI double, and a Rams run from third initially voided by a runner interference automatic doubleplay at second before Matt Corin singled the runner home.
The Rams were starting their third at bats against Knight when Van Horn relieved with Loseke after a leadoff single and sacrifice bunt.
“I had a fast ball and slider today and when my fast ball velocity dropped a little bit I got a sink on it,” Loseke said. “Our offense turned it around and got five runs.”