The Diamond Hogs are moving on to game two of the Fayetteville regional. Arkansas skated past North Dakota State yesterday as the Bison put up a fight in the first two innings before the Hogs took over. Aiden Jimenez got the start on the mound and struggled at first, giving up two runs early, but tightened up his arm to pitch the next 1.2 innings without giving up another run. Parker Coil and Landon Beidelschies came in relief to finish off the Bison.
Cam Kozeal was the star of the show on Friday, scoring four of Arknasas' six RBIs in his first three at-bats. The top of the order hit well, with Charles Davalan, Wehiwa Aloy, Ryder Helfrick, and Kuhio Aloy recording at least a .333 average against the Bison.
Today, the Hogs will take on the No. 3 seed in the Fayetteville Regional—the Creighton Bluejays.
Creighton surprised Kansas with a 7-run innings in the sixth. Before, the two were tied at three runs a piece. What's more impressive, though, is Creighton's pitching staff holding the Jayhawks—one of the best offenses in the country—to only four runs.
Arkansas baseball vs Creighton preview: Fayetteville Regional
The Razorbacks and Bluejays have met on the diamond only four times in history, with Arkansas leading the series 4-0. The first meeting was in 2003, with the Hogs winning 9-5, and the last was a 6-2 victory in Fayetteville.
This year, Creighton dominated the Big East. Of the five high-major games the Bluejays have played this season (Kansas St., Nebraska, and Kansas), they've only lost once to the Cornhuskers in a three-game series spread over the season. Creighton is also on a massive win streak, winning 14 of its last 15 games.
However, they haven't faced a pitching staff like the Razorbacks this season. And with the Hogs saving their ace for today's game, Arkansas has a serious advantage.
Who's on the mound?
For Arkansas, Friday night starter Zach Root will take the starting role tonight. He's had an up-and-down season, with his latest outing going awry quickly. But overall, he's hands down the best pitcher on the team, averaging 1.34 strikeouts an inning, with an ERA of 4.07.
On the mound for the Bluejays is Wilson Magers. While Magers may not be the 'ace' per se, he does have the most experience this season. He's pitched 69.2 innings this season, giving up an ERA of 3.10. Magers doesn't produce many strikeouts and walks batters once every two innings or so, but historically, batters have a hard time gaging his pitches, with opposing players averaging .201 against him, the best on all pitchers who've pitched 10 or more innings this season.
Creighton's Top Hitters
Nolan Sailors is the Bluejays' best hitter, averaging an outstanding .399 at the plate. He's responsible for 43 RBIs, five home runs, 17 doubles, and four triples. Sailors also leads the team in on-base and slugging percentage with an OPS of 1.085. In Creighton's win Friday night, Sailors went 3-4 for four RBIs and a home, meanwhile striking out zero times and walking twice.
However, probably the most clutch hitter on the team is Ben North. He leads Creighton with 56 RBIs and is No. 2 in home runs with seven. His problem is that he doesn't walk and strikes out more than anyone on the team. Against Kansas, North went 0-6, striking out three times.
Bluejays Bullpen
Friday, Creighton burned right-handed pitchers Dominic Cancelleri (its ace), Ian Koosman, and Jimmy Burke.
Throughout the season, Jack Pineau has been the third starter for the Bluejays, so Arkansas will most likely not see him come out of the bullpen. That leaves five pitchers left who have pitched more than 20 innings this season: Grant Langrell, Matthew Aukerman, Shea Wendt, Shane Curtin, and Noah Klien. Their ERAs range anywhere from 2.53 to 5.54, with Aukerman putting out the best numbers with Langrell hot on his tail with an ERA of 2.77.
Langrell and Aukerman have also pitched more than 40 innings this season, while the other three have less than 27 under their belts. With the most strikeouts among the five and the highest strikeouts per nine innings ratio on the team, Langrell is arguably the most dangerous arm out of the bullpen. It wouldn't be a surprise to see him take the mound sometime against the Razorbacks.