No. 1 Arkansas (32-3, 12-1 SEC) pushed across 13 unanswered runs in the final six innings while down 3-0 after the third inning to take the series opener over the No. 7 Georgia Bulldogs (30-6, 8-5 SEC), 13-3, on Friday night at Foley Field in Athens, Ga. The Razorbacks are on their best 35-game start in program history and have broken the school record with 12 straight Southeastern Conference wins.
Arkansas Baseball vs Georgia: Game one
Georgia struck first in the bottom of the second inning with 2B Christian Adams reaching on a one-out walk and C Daniel Jackson doubling to left field to put runners in scoring position. CF Devin Obee drove in Adams on an RBI groundout to third base. SS Kolby Branch followed up with a two-run home run to center to give the Bulldogs an early 3-0 lead.
Arkansas began the top of the fourth with SS Wehiwa Aloy was hit by a pitch with one out after the first 10 batters of the game were retired in order. RF Logan Maxwell doubled to left center off of RHP Brian Curley to score Aloy and cut the lead to two. 3B Brent Iredale followed up with an RBI single to center on the very next pitch to bring the Hogs within one, 3-2. 1B Camden Kozeal reached on a fielder’s choice and moved up to second base on a throwing error at short. DH Kuhio Aloy tied the game with an RBI single to left field but was thrown out at second. Either way, Arkansas’s three-spot knotted up the game, 3-3.
Nolan Souza Injury
In the top of the fifth inning, Souza doubled to left field with one out to try and get another rally started. He was thrown out at third base after CF Justin Thomas Jr. grounded into a fielder’s choice. Souza crashed into Georgia 3B Slate Alford on a head-first slide. He was hunched over for a couple of minutes but made his way back to the dugout in his own power while holding his right shoulder. Gabe Fraser took over at second base for the rest of the game, and Souza’s shoulder was in a sling with a bag of ice over it.
LHP Zach Root went 5.2 innings in his ninth start of the year while allowing three runs, five hits and three walks with seven strikeouts on 95 pitches (61 strikes). He was relieved by RHP Aiden Jimenez with runners on first and second with two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning. After allowing a walk to load the bases, Jimenez forced Branch to fly out to right field to end the frame and keep the game tied.
The Hogs broke the 3-3 tie in the top of the seventh with Kuhio Aloy leading off with a walk. One batter later, Fraser dug in the box and lined an RBI triple to right center to the deepest part of the ballpark to give Arkansas the lead. RHP JT Quinn held Fraser at third by striking out Thomas and LF Charles Davalan.
The Razorbacks extended their lead to two on a solo shot by Wehiwa Aloy to lead off the top of the eighth, 5-3, for his 11th dinger of the season. The pitch was golfed 405 feet to right field at 102 MPH off of RHP Eric Hammond. Iredale kept the frame going with a double to left center with one out. RHP Jordan Stephens relieved Hammond and struck out Kozeal for the second out. Kuhio Aloy extended the lead to three on an RBI single to right field for his second run batted in of the game.
Arkansas put the game out of reach in the top of the ninth by loading the bases on a walk by Fraser, Thomas reaching on an error and Davalan drawing a walk. After RHP Paul Farley relieved Stephens, Wehiwa Aloy smoked a ground-rule double to right center to score two and lengthen the lead to five, 8-3. After Maxwell struck out, Davlan scored on a wild pitch while Wehia Aloy moved up to third base. Iredale was hit by a pitch to place runners on the corners, and Kozeal plated Wehiwa Aloy with an RBI single up the middle to put the Hogs up by a touchdown, 10-3.
Jimenez fired 2.1 innings of relief while allowing just one walk with two strikeouts on 31 pitches (22 strikes) in his 11th appearance of the season. RHP Dylan Carter was brought in the bottom of the ninth to shut down the game and threw a perfect frame with two strikeouts on 12 pitches (seven strikes).
Kuhio Aloy followed up by dropping in an RBI single to right field to cash in Iredale while Kozeal sprinted to third. C Ryder Helfrick kept the line moving with an RBI single to left to punch in Kozeal, and Fraser drew a walk to load the bases. RHP Justin Byrd was inserted on the mound to record the final two outs for Georgia and made Thomas strike out. A passed ball allowed Kuhio Aloy to score to give the Hogs a 10-run lead to cap off the seven-run rally.
The Razorbacks and the Bulldogs will meet back up at Foley Field for the second game of the three-game series. The first pitch is slated for 3 p.m. and will be streamed on SEC Network+.