Hogs continue SEC play after big wins
Harold McIlvain II
Issue date: 4/10/09 Section: Sports
It hasn't been a rare occurrence for the No. 12 Arkansas Razorback baseball team to score late and often this season.
And with another late-inning rally, Arkansas did it again against No. 1 Arizona State Wednesday in front of 11,014 fans - a Baum Stadium record.
After falling behind early, the Razorbacks scored seven runs between the fourth and fifth innings to sweep the two-game series.
"With the schedule we have played, we have been behind a lot this year," Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn. "We were down 5-0 and both teams were using the middle of the week pitching. We took advantage of mistakes and got some big two-out hits."
But even with the big wins, Van Horn said it is important for the team to focus on the Southeastern Conference series against Vanderbilt at Baum this weekend.
"I told our guys that those were two great wins," Van Horn said. "But I don't want to make this feel like the highlight of the season. We have a lot of baseball left to play."
Senior outfielder Andrew Darr - who finished the midweek series 4-for-8 with two runs and five RBIs - said the wins over Arizona State were big heading back into SEC play.
"Getting the two-game sweep was really important for us, especially heading into this weekend," Darr said. "Vanderbilt will be another great test for us. They are going to come at us with everything they've got."
In its last conference game, Vanderbilt battled back after being down 9-2 in the bottom of the sixth inning by scoring 14 runs over the final three innings, winning 16-9 to take the series.
"We were down by seven and we won by seven," Vanderbilt head coach Tim Corbin said. "We've been down in the sixth inning before and not won, but we've been building up to this moment. We were left for dead until the sixth, and we came alive in the sixth, seventh and eighth."
But the Commodores followed the win with an 8-0 shutout loss to Middle Tennessee in a midweek game.
"Middle Tennessee is a very good team that is playing better than us right now," Corbin said. "They scored in every inning but three. It was their night."
And with another late-inning rally, Arkansas did it again against No. 1 Arizona State Wednesday in front of 11,014 fans - a Baum Stadium record.
After falling behind early, the Razorbacks scored seven runs between the fourth and fifth innings to sweep the two-game series.
"With the schedule we have played, we have been behind a lot this year," Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn. "We were down 5-0 and both teams were using the middle of the week pitching. We took advantage of mistakes and got some big two-out hits."
But even with the big wins, Van Horn said it is important for the team to focus on the Southeastern Conference series against Vanderbilt at Baum this weekend.
"I told our guys that those were two great wins," Van Horn said. "But I don't want to make this feel like the highlight of the season. We have a lot of baseball left to play."
Senior outfielder Andrew Darr - who finished the midweek series 4-for-8 with two runs and five RBIs - said the wins over Arizona State were big heading back into SEC play.
"Getting the two-game sweep was really important for us, especially heading into this weekend," Darr said. "Vanderbilt will be another great test for us. They are going to come at us with everything they've got."
In its last conference game, Vanderbilt battled back after being down 9-2 in the bottom of the sixth inning by scoring 14 runs over the final three innings, winning 16-9 to take the series.
"We were down by seven and we won by seven," Vanderbilt head coach Tim Corbin said. "We've been down in the sixth inning before and not won, but we've been building up to this moment. We were left for dead until the sixth, and we came alive in the sixth, seventh and eighth."
But the Commodores followed the win with an 8-0 shutout loss to Middle Tennessee in a midweek game.
"Middle Tennessee is a very good team that is playing better than us right now," Corbin said. "They scored in every inning but three. It was their night."
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