Razorbacks head to Tulsa for Border War
Derek Oxford
Issue date: 4/1/09 Section: Sports
The Border War is on.
Arkansas looks to take the confidence it earned in Sunday's 6-0 win over Ole Miss into today's games in Tulsa, Okla., with neighboring Oklahoma State and Tulsa.
"Today was huge for us to salvage a win in this series," Arkansas head coach Jamie Pinkerton said after Sunday's game. "I also thought it was a good way for us to pick up a little momentum heading into the Border War games and then hosting Auburn next weekend."
Miranda Dixon is coming off a 10-strikeout performance along with hitting a two-run shot in Sunday's game against the Rebels.
"Miranda pitched well today as she did (on Saturday)," Pinkerton said. "The difference is we scored more runs for her today and she got the win."
It was Dixon's second complete-game shutout of the Southeastern Conference season as she walked only a single Ole Miss batter.
"She deserved the win Saturday, too," Pinkerton said. "I was proud of the way she came out and worked ahead of hitters. It was a gutsy performance for her, which is what you want from your ace when your team is on a losing streak."
The Razorbacks (19-13, 8-4) will take time out of their SEC slate to battle the Cowgirls and Golden Hurricane.
Arkansas has already played OSU once this season, losing 7-6 on the final day of the Oklahoma State Mizuno Classic.
Oklahoma State jumped ahead 6-0 in that game, but Arkansas responded and tied things up, then gave up a run late and went down in defeat.
That game against the Cowgirls prepared Arkansas for conference play, where the Razorbacks have compiled an 8-4 record, with a majority of those games coming on the road.
"We started conference play with eight of 11 games on the road, and to come out of that with a 5-3 record in those road games is great," Pinkerton said.
Tulsa is an opponent Arkansas has not faced this season, but the Golden Hurricane are no slouch, either.
They have a 21-9 overall mark, including a 6-2 record in Conference USA play, and beat Oklahoma State 5-3 last Wednesday.
"That was a good win," Tulsa head coach John Bargfeldt said after the win over Oklahoma State. "That's a good ballclub, and they've been hot. For most of this year, they have been scoring a lot of runs and having great pitching."
Nebraska split with Oklahoma State over the weekend, handing the Cowgirls their first conference loss of the season, and currently leaves them at 26-8 overall.
Whitney Cloer recorded her 25th RBI of the season in Sunday's win over Ole Miss, while Kayla Johnson had a monster outing the day before in a doubleheader.
The senior from Bartlesville, Okla., had four hits and three RBIs in the twin bill on Saturday, although the Razorbacks lost a pair of one-run decisions.
Dixon pitched in the second game and gave up only three runs, but they all came at an inopportune time in the sixth inning and Arkansas didn't have an answer.
Arkansas looks to take the confidence it earned in Sunday's 6-0 win over Ole Miss into today's games in Tulsa, Okla., with neighboring Oklahoma State and Tulsa.
"Today was huge for us to salvage a win in this series," Arkansas head coach Jamie Pinkerton said after Sunday's game. "I also thought it was a good way for us to pick up a little momentum heading into the Border War games and then hosting Auburn next weekend."
Miranda Dixon is coming off a 10-strikeout performance along with hitting a two-run shot in Sunday's game against the Rebels.
"Miranda pitched well today as she did (on Saturday)," Pinkerton said. "The difference is we scored more runs for her today and she got the win."
It was Dixon's second complete-game shutout of the Southeastern Conference season as she walked only a single Ole Miss batter.
"She deserved the win Saturday, too," Pinkerton said. "I was proud of the way she came out and worked ahead of hitters. It was a gutsy performance for her, which is what you want from your ace when your team is on a losing streak."
The Razorbacks (19-13, 8-4) will take time out of their SEC slate to battle the Cowgirls and Golden Hurricane.
Arkansas has already played OSU once this season, losing 7-6 on the final day of the Oklahoma State Mizuno Classic.
Oklahoma State jumped ahead 6-0 in that game, but Arkansas responded and tied things up, then gave up a run late and went down in defeat.
That game against the Cowgirls prepared Arkansas for conference play, where the Razorbacks have compiled an 8-4 record, with a majority of those games coming on the road.
"We started conference play with eight of 11 games on the road, and to come out of that with a 5-3 record in those road games is great," Pinkerton said.
Tulsa is an opponent Arkansas has not faced this season, but the Golden Hurricane are no slouch, either.
They have a 21-9 overall mark, including a 6-2 record in Conference USA play, and beat Oklahoma State 5-3 last Wednesday.
"That was a good win," Tulsa head coach John Bargfeldt said after the win over Oklahoma State. "That's a good ballclub, and they've been hot. For most of this year, they have been scoring a lot of runs and having great pitching."
Nebraska split with Oklahoma State over the weekend, handing the Cowgirls their first conference loss of the season, and currently leaves them at 26-8 overall.
Whitney Cloer recorded her 25th RBI of the season in Sunday's win over Ole Miss, while Kayla Johnson had a monster outing the day before in a doubleheader.
The senior from Bartlesville, Okla., had four hits and three RBIs in the twin bill on Saturday, although the Razorbacks lost a pair of one-run decisions.
Dixon pitched in the second game and gave up only three runs, but they all came at an inopportune time in the sixth inning and Arkansas didn't have an answer.
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