Pallette, Slavens lift Razorbacks to victory

ARLINGTON, Texas – Arkansas is a perfect 2-0 to start the year.

The No. 8 Razorbacks silenced No. 9 Texas (0-2) on its own turf Sunday night at Globe Life Field, downing the Longhorns 4-0 with Arkansas pitchers limiting Texas to two hits with a combined 15 strikeouts.

Peyton Pallette had a career-best eight punchouts over 4 1/3 innings.

He retired the first six batters he faced. He struck out two in the first before striking out the side in the top of the second.

The Benton native worked around a bases-loaded jam in the third, collecting another strikeout along the way.

He then set down the Longhorns in order in the fourth, grabbing his seventh strikeout in the frame. Pallette struck out the very first batter he faced in the fifth before he was pulled for his rising pitch count, finishing the outing with eight strikeouts.

Pallette departed the ballgame with a one-run lead thanks to designated hitter Brady Slavens, who single-handedly powered the Hog offense on

Sunday night.

The Olathe, Kan., product drove in all four runs in the win, starting with his RBI single in the bottom of the fourth that put Arkansas up 1-0.

Slavens then broke the game open in the sixth inning, launching a three-run homer to right-center that put the Hogs ahead by four.

The home run was Arkansas' first round-tripper of the season.

Left-hander Caden Monke and right-hander Caleb Bolden came on in relief of Pallette and made the lead stand up. Bolden tossed four scoreless frames out of the bullpen, striking out seven to lock down Arkansas' second consecutive win over a top-10 opponent.

Sunday's win was Arkansas' sixth all-time shutout of Texas. The Razorbacks last did so during the 1988 campaign when they took down the Longhorns 5-0, in Austin, Texas.

The State Farm College Baseball Showdown concluded Monday night with Arkansas taking on No. 10 TCU.