Big Baum crowd helps Hogs win pitchers’ duel
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas junior right-hander Trevor Stephan started a shutout masterpiece that freshmen Kevin Kopps and Matt Cronin finished against Oral Roberts Friday night.
A 3-0 victory before 11,088, the fifth-largest crowd ever at Baum Stadium, propelled the Razorbacks (43-17) into the winners’-bracket game of the Fayetteville Regional Saturday night against Missouri State Bears, a 6-5 afternoon winner over Oklahoma State.
Stephan threw a four-hit shutout through 7 1/3 striking out 12 and walking three. He was replaced by Kopps after throwing his career high 116th pitch for a one-out walk after a leadoff single in the eighth.
Right-hander Kopps, inheriting a 2-0 lead after Chad Spanberger doubled home Jack Kenley in the fifth and Eric Cole’s bloop double scored Jake Arledge in the seventh, struck out clean-up hitter Noah Cummings and threw out Brent Williams on a grounder back to the box.
Arledge singled home an eighth-inning run, making 3-0, but Oral Roberts sent the tying rule to the plate against Cronin in the ninth.
Kopps gave up a leadoff single, retired the next two on fly outs, one a great catch by Arledge in left, then was tagged for Sam Gellner’s single. Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn summoned lefty Cronin, who struck out left-handed one-hole hitter Nick Roark to send Stephan home a winner and Arkansas into the winners’ bracket.
ORU ace lefty Miguel Ausua (11-3) deserved a better fate, scattering eight hits and replaced in the seventh down 2-0. An ORU throwing error after an infield hit and preceding Cole’s bloop double finished Ausua.
Arkansas played not only errorless but superb defense behind Stephan and Kopps.
Other than Stephan hitting a batter and Ausua walking one, both starters zipped through the first two innings then labored in the third.
No. 8 ORU hitter Trevor McCutchin doubled leading off, and Grellner bunted him to third. Stephan struck out Nick Roark but walked Cal Hernandez on four pitches and walked Matt Whatley on a full count. Up stepped Noah Cummings but down he went on three pitches, caught looking at strike three on the outside corner.
In Arkansas’ third, No. 9 hitter Kenley chopped a one-out single up the middle. After Ausua’s second third-inning strikeout, Spanberger managed an up-the middle single that ORU second baseman Nick Roark gloved but with no play. Bonfield singled to left; Kenley was waved home but thrown out at the plate by left fielder Michael Hungate.
Second baseman Carson Shaddy, twice, and shortstop Jax Biggers,
saved Stephan in the fourth. Dylan Snypes and Michael Hungate stroked one-out singles putting runners at first and second.
McCutchin scorched an apparently RBI base-hit bound for right. A leaping Shaddy snagged it for the out with the runners scrambling back to avoid getting doubled off. Grellner whacked one apparently through the middle but Biggers miraculously snagged it on the grass and flipped to an onrushing Shaddy making a deft play of his own beating Hungate to the bag for an inning-ending forceout.
Grant Koch and Dominic Fletcher singled leading off the Arkansas fourth but Shaddy’s sac bunt attempt right back to Ausua forced the runner at third leaving Biggers’ long fly to right just tagging the runner to third before Jake Arledge grounded out.
Spanberger and Kenley broke the drought in the fifth. Kenley had a leadoff single to right and advanced on Cole’s soft grounder to second. Spanberger doubled him home, his shot to right towards the foul line landing fair and rattling around in the corner.
“I thought it was a very wellpitched game by both teams,” Van Horn said. “I thought Trevor Stephan and Miguel Ausua went at it. It reminded me of a Friday-night SEC game where maybe one big hit or mistake made the difference. ORU (in caliber) that’s a SEC team there.”
ORU coach Ryan Folmar said the game lived up to its billing as the fourth-seeded Golden Eagles, 42-15, being up to the challenge but that, “Their guy (Stephan) was really good. I thought he was the difference in today’s game.”
The capacity crowd helped, too, Stephan said.
“It’s awesome,” Stephan said. “It gives you chills down your spine.”