Arkansas baseball responds after giving up lead

FAYETTEVILLE — The No. 3 Arkansas Razorback baseball team responded to a small dose adversity with a major clubbing on a gorgeous Sunday afternoon at the ball park.

After blowing a four-run lead and falling behind in the fifth inning, the University of Arkansas put up 14 runs in their final two times up to bat to crunch McNeese State 18-5 in a seven-inning run-rule game before an announced crowd of 9,296 at Baum-Walker Stadium.

The Razorbacks (13-2) swept the Cowboys (8-8) by winning their ninth consecutive game. Arkansas outscored McNeese State 32-7 over the weekend and improved to 9-3 in the series.

“It was good to see our team respond like that because we hadn't had too much adversity where we've blown a lead or made some mistakes that have cost us,” Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said.

“It's like I told them after the game, it's not going to be easy every game. You're going to have to fight and come from behind.

“It was a good weekend for us. Won them all, played fairly well. Pitched fairly well, but not great, but we got some pitchers that know how to get out of jams and they held them down this weekend.”

The Razorbacks hit 15 for 35 (.429) with two outs against the Cowboys as they played their eighth game of a season-high 12-game home stand.

Ben McLaughlin went 4 for 5 and drove in three runs and Ross Lovich homered and drove in four to lead the Hogs' 12-hit attack on Sunday. Ty Wilmsmeyer reached base three times and provided the go-ahead, two-run single with two outs in the Hogs' six-run fifth inning for his first RBI since the opening weekend.

Right-hander Dylan Carter (Bentonville West) made his first appearance since April 27, 2023, after undergoing ulnar collateral ligament surgery. The fans gave him a big ovation as he come on to record the final two outs in the top of the seventh inning.

“At first it was nerve-racking, I'm not going to lie,” Carter said. “Just haven't really been out in a game for so long. Just being able to settle my nerves was a big key.

“Afterwards it was like, ‘It's time to ride for the rest of the year.' The rehab process, it's long. It was very long. Just being able to throw a baseball again after five months was probably the happiest day of my life.”

The Razorbacks batted around three times in their six times at the plate, including in the third inning when they built a 4-0 lead for left-hander Mason Molina.

Hudson White walked and Wilmsmeyer singled with one out. Peyton Stovall, at designated hitter for the third consecutive game, laced a run-scoring single to right-center and Wehiwa Aloy followed with an RBI single up the middle. After Kendall Diggs drew a walk, McLaughlin capped the frame with a two-run single.

Down 4-0, the Cowboys kept battling. Catcher Parker Stroh hit a solo home run over the right-field wall in the fourth. In the fifth, Easton Dowell doubled, Ben David singled and Gage Trahan walked to load the bases off Molina, and Van Horn called on reliever Gage Wood (3-0).

Wood induced an RBI groundout from Conner Westenburg, but Cooper Hext fouled off three pitchers then shot a triple into the right field corner to tie the game at 4-4.

Chase Keeton followed with a flare to right field to give the Cowboys their first lead of the weekend. Wood recorded consecutive outs to escape the inning as part of his six outs to his final seven batters.

The Razorbacks got busy in the bottom of the fifth with the help of a key McNeese error to take command for good.

Diggs and McLaughlin got the rally started with one-out singles. Jared Sprague-Lott followed with a grounder to third that had the looks of a 5-3 double play, but the third baseman Trahan whiffed on a swipe instead of getting behind the ball and it trickled through for an error to send Diggs home for the tying run. Nolan Souza walked to load the bases, and with two outs Wilmsmeyer hit a Kainin Morrow (3-1) offering through the hole at shortstop for a two-run single.

Lovich backed that up with a three-run homer, his first as a Razorback, to open the floodgates.

“Obviously we got punched in the mouth right there,” Wilmsmeyer said. “They had a big inning. They took a lead on us there. The energy out of the dugout had the belief that we were going to win and punch back. We were able to get some guys on. Get a few big hits.

“Ross hits his first Razorback bomb. Pretty cool to see. Just punching back right there and getting guys on base. Keeping the line turning.”

Said Lovich, “There was no panic in our dugout. We knew they were a good team. But we just have so much self-belief and we knew we were going to get it done. We were going to do whatever it takes to get it done.”

Arkansas racked up eight runs in the sixth on five walks, a hit by pitch, and run-scoring hits by Stovall, Diggs and McLaughlin to complete the rout.