No. 3 Arkansas (17-2, 1-1 SEC) used an eight-run rally in the top of the fifth inning to blast the No. 13 Ole Miss Rebels (15-3, 1-1 SEC), 12-3, and even the series Saturday night at Swayze Field in Oxford, MS. With this win, Razorback head coach Dave Van Horn picked up his 900th career win as the Head Hog.
Arkansas vs Ole Miss: Game 2
The Hogs broke out early in the top of the first inning to take a 1-0 lead. LF Charles Davalan started the inning with a single, and SS Wehiwa Aloy drew a walk to put runners on first and second. DH Kuhio Aloy grounded out to advance both runners into scoring position, and RF Logan Maxwell plated Davalan with a sacrifice fly to center field.
Ole Miss struck back in the bottom half of the first and took the lead from Arkansas. LF Hayden Federico led off the frame by striking out but reached on a dropped strike three. 2B Luke Hill doubled to right center and RF Mitchell Sanford drew a walk to load the bases.
DH Ryan Moerman was hit by a pitch that tied the game, and RHP Gabe Gaeckle threw a wild pitch that allowed each runner to move up a base and gave the Rebels the lead, 2-1. After allowing a walk to CF Issac Humphery to load the bases again, Gaeckle struck out 3B Judd Utermark and forced 1B Will Furniss to ground into a double play to end the inning.
All was quiet until Arkansas put up an eight-run rally in the top of the fifth. CF Justin Thomas Jr. led off with an infield single, and Davalan hit a two-run homer to right field to give the Razorbacks the lead back. RHP Will McCausland relieved RHP Riley Maddox after the two-run blast. The Aloy brothers hit back-to-back home runs off of the new pitcher to give the Hogs a three-run lead, 5-2.
The fun did not stop as 3B Brent Iredale was hit by a pitch, and Maxwell singled through the right side to put runners on the corners. 1B Rocco Peppi plated Iredale with an RBI single through the left side to extend the lead to four.
McCausland was replaced by LHP Ryne Rodriguez after failing to record an out. 2B Camden Kozeal kept the line moving by lacing a double down the right field line to cash in Maxwell while Peppi advanced to third. Peppi came around to score, and Kozeal moved to third after C Ryder Helfrick reached on a fielding error by Sanford in right field. Thomas lifted a sacrifice fly to right to score Kozeal to hand the Hogs a seven-run lead, 9-2.
LHP Parker Coil relieved Gaeckle to begin the bottom of the fifth. Gaeckle tossed four innings in his fifth start of the year and allowed two runs on one hit and three walks while carving up eight batters on 79 pitches (46 strikes).
The Rebels got a run back in the bottom of the sixth on a solo shot by C Austin Fawley with two outs.
Arkansas opened up the top of the ninth with back-to-back solo shots off of Ole Miss RHP Landon Waters by Maxwell and Nolan Souza to put the icing on the cake. Kozeal made his way on with a single and later stole second base with two outs. Davalan brought him in with a single through the left side to finish up with a 4-for-6 night at the plate with a home run and three RBIs.
The Hog pitching staff combined for a season-high 18 strikeouts on the night while allowing just four hits and three walks. RHP Aidan Jimenez was solid in relief with a three-inning save in which he struck out six batters on 35 pitches (24 strikes) while Coil picked up the win.
The Razorbacks and the Rebels will play a rubber match on Sunday to decide the series at Swayze Field. The first pitch is scheduled for 1:30 p.m., and the game will be streamed on SEC Network+.