FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Dave Van Horn didn’t panic as his Razorbacks blew an 8-0 lead in their opening game of the NCAA Regional on Friday afternoon. He just went for a short walk.
“I walked up and down the dugout and told the guys on the bench that when the guys come off the field, you have to pick them up,” Van Horn said. “You have to remind them that the game is even.”
Top seed Arkansas led 8-0 after two innings against fourth-seeded Southeast Missouri State and the Baum-Walker Stadium faithful were already celebrating. However, the Redhawks posted a four-spot in the third and fifth innings to quiet the crowd of 11,062. Worse, UA fans were nervous, angry about the Hogs’ pitchers on their way to throwing out a season-record 10 free passes, and now afraid of losing.
At that point the match was as messy as the pre-match weather that threatened a delay. Both teams had eight runs, but each had only five basehits.
SEMO coach Andy Sawyers was as hopeful as Arkansas fans were despondent. “I thought we were going to win in the middle of the game,” Sawyers said. “I really did. When it was 8-on-8, I legitimately thought we were going to win. When they brought (closer Gabe Gaeckle) in in the sixth inning, I thought we had them where we wanted them.”
Instead, the Hogs responded with a pair of two-out solo home runs from shortstop Wehiwa Aloy and right fielder Kendall Diggs in the bottom of the fifth to regain the lead. Van Horn said the immediate response was a huge boost to confidence and morale.
“When we answered, it really set our dugout on fire,” Van Horn said. “That was important for us to score after they tied the score.” He felt the players on the bench were doing their job, cheering up the starters after his dugout-long walk and talking to them to provide encouragement after Semo’s rally to level the game. “Our dugout did a good job there,” he added.
Hog hitters kept the pressure on when first baseman Ben McLaughlin hit his second three-run homer in the seventh. Catcher Hudson White opened the scoring with a solo homer to right in the first inning, added a sacrifice fly before McLaughlin’s home run in the seventh, and closed the scoring with a two-run blast to left-center in the eighth, which the 17-9 final.
“White is a lot stronger than I realized,” Sawyers said. “He really has a butt.”
Both of McLaughlin’s home runs — he now has nine for the season, one more than White — came on two hits. He just hit the ball where it was thrown, McLaughlin said, and “Stacking ABs (at bats) is all I try to do.”
The Hogs did well as a team and ultimately scored 16 goals. Still, three SEMO errors resulted in six unearned points for the home team, although Van Horn was philosophical about gifting both teams. “They kicked a few balls, that helped us.” he said matter-of-factly. “When we let them out, they scored.”
Van Horn never wants his pitchers to give up nine runs, especially if he has to use four relievers and perhaps burn his closer for the remainder of the double-elimination opening round of the tournament. Gaeckle said he’s feeling fine despite throwing 62 pitches, but Van Horn’s response to whether his freshman fireballer would be available Sunday or even Monday was to shrug and say, “He’s not going to throw unless he commits.” feels good.”
Good news is how the Hog hitters are feeling now after claiming a slugfest reminiscent of their 20-13 opening victory in the 1985 NCAA Regional and a 20-12 drubbing of Oklahoma State just two years ago.
When asked if Friday’s winning style could actually benefit a baseball club in the long run, Van Horn nodded and said, “Sometimes that certainly can be the case when your offense comes alive and guys start getting good with the bats.” to wave. It can be transferred and you can just keep scoring. running.”
PIGS FOOD:
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