Root reaches new levels in Super Regionals propels Arkansas past Vols, earns ROW

Facing the defending national champion Tennessee Volunteers' potent offensive lineup with a trip back to the College World Series on the line for the Arkansas Razorbacks, junior pitching ace Zach Root found an extra gear to out duel the best the Vols could muster and propelled Arkansas to a critical 4-3 win and a repeat performance as Razorbacker of the Week.

Zack Root earns second Razorbacker of the Week nod

As he has done on multiple occasions all season, Root set the tone for another brilliant week of baseball in the season's final series in Baum Walker Stadium. Root followed up his three-hit, six-innings of shutout pitching against the Big East Conference Champion Creighton Blue Jays in the NCAA Tournament Regional Round with a seven-inning, six-strikeout, one hitter to demoralize Tennessee in the Super Regionals on Saturday.

"He’s really made a jump. He’s really gotten better," Razorback coach Dave Van Horn said after the game. "Our pitching coach (Matt) Hobbs has really done a great job with him and Zach is a super competitor. He wanted to get better and his outing (against Creighton) was outstanding as well. I feel like he came here because he wanted to get better. He wanted to pitch for coach Hobbs and he’s been everything that we were hoping — and more honestly."

Tennessee's offense — ranked third in the SEC behind Arkansas and Georgia — had gotten the better of Root on May 15 to open the regular season's final series at Baum Walker Stadium. In that game, Root was matched up with Tennessee' Marcus Phillips where neither pitcher went more than four innings in a 10-7 Volunteer win. Arkansas went on to win the series with a pair of 8-6 and 8-4 victories, but both pitchers brought their A-games to the postseason rematch.

Phillips made it through five-and-a-third innings while giving up eight hits and four earned runs. Meanwhile in order to push Arkansas past the Volunteers this time, Root (8-5) sailed through four scoreless innings to start the game, before a fielding error followed by a home run by Dean Curley gave the Vols a 2-1 lead in the top of the fifth.

The Razorbacks responded by getting Phillips out of the game and taking the lead for good in the bottom half of the inning when catcher Ryan Helfrick responded with a two-run shot of his own.

It remains somewhat murky what happened from there as the fireworks between Root and Tennessee's top hitter Andrew Fischer fanned into flames. Words were exchanged in the top of the fourth when Root summoned a career-high 99 mile an hour fastball and dismissed Fischer back to the dugout with his signature hand wave after the slugger wiffed on a third strike.

Facing the heart of Tennessee's lineup in the top of the sixth inning, Root was denied a one-out strikeout of Volunteer lead-off hitter Gavin Klein on a close call by the home plate umpire Rick Allen. That brought Fischer back to the plate, but when he grounded out to an inning-ending double play Root's emotions finally boiled over.

"I was just competing and I kind of blacked out there so I can’t answer that for you. I don’t remember," Root said when asked about the ensuing emotional outburst. "...It was just a big game and like I said, I was just going out there competing and giving the team a chance to win and I just kind of blacked out."

Van Horn said he was not pleased to see his No. 1 starter let his emotions get the best of him but understood the moment. The umpires convened in between innings and decided to let both teams — and both stars off with a warning.

"I want him to stay under control so he can pitch longer," Van Horn said. "You can only use so much adrenalin and it’s going to start backfiring on you after a while but his stuff was tremendous. He was just competing like he said.

"I think probably the crowd got him going a little bit with all that was going on. I like the fact that he could still throw the ball over the plate and he did a great job. He gave us seven strong innings. "

With the day's work hardly done, Root used the time in between innings to compose himself for a seventh inning home stretch.

"I just kind of got back in the dugout and was kind of waiting to see if I was going to get tossed or not," the junior transfer from East Carolina said. "I just kind of cooled down and I’m pretty sure we scored one run in that inning. So, I kind of got a longer rest and I was able to cool down."

What proved to be an important insurance run came in the top half of the inning on an RBI single from Charles Davalan to drive in Brent Iredale. Root then came back in the bottom of the seventh and retire the Volunteers one last time.

"I would say they are still the big hitting scary Tennessee team they were three weeks ago," Root said. "It was just better to go out there this time and get the results than what happened last time in a big game like this,"

Root responded by retiring the next three Volunteers in order before giving way to Gabe Gaeckle in the eighth inning.

"We didn’t feel like he was done. We felt like he still had something left and he showed us that he did," Van Horn said. "As a matter of fact, he could have gone back out in the eighth. I think he was at 95 and we were getting ready to go back through their line up again. We had to go through the seven, eight and nine (hitters). Then we were back up at the top and we thought, 'Nah let’s get Gaeckle in there and get him rolling before we get to the top of that order because we knew that would be tough."

It proved to be as Gaeckle gave up a solo homer to Fischer in the top of the ninth, but secured the save by striking out Dalton Bargo for the final out.

"A lot of times at this time of the year guys are fading, but (Root) seems to be maybe getting a little stronger," Van Horn said. "He can reach back and get a little more when he needs it. He doesn’t have to pitch it at 96 but he can go to 96 or 97 — maybe a little more and you saw it. 

"I like the fact that he’s throwing that change up and breaking ball for a strike. It keeps you off balance just enough. Whenever you’ve got two guys like the pitchers we threw (Saturday), you’re confident you can keep teams down — even a great hitting team like Tennessee. They did it. It gives me a lot of confidence and I had no problem when coach Hobbs and I were talking at the end of seven. I didn’t know exactly what his pitch count was but he says, ‘What do you think?’ He said it was 95 so I said, ‘Let’s get him because Gabe is awesome. Let him have his turn.’