Hogs pull away late in 7-4 win over LSU

Thanks to a big eighth inning, the Diamond Hogs pulled away late to take game one over No. 8 LSU.

All season long, the bats have been hot or cold, and Arkansas has relied heavily on its outstanding pitching staff to win games. Although his performance was immaculate—recording 10 strikeouts—LSU tested Hagen Smith for the first time this season.

The lefty had only given up one earned run since the opening series against James Madison, but the Tigers scored back-to-back homers to take the lead in the top of the fourth. Smith also gave up 5 hits, the most he’s allowed in a single game this season.

Still, LSU’s relative success against Smith would fall short. Arkansas looked like a different team at the plate. They forced LSU to burn through 7 pitchers, mainly because they were patient.

The Tigers’ bullpen had trouble finding the strike zone (but to be fair, it seemed to move around all night long), and Arkansas’ batters stayed patient. LSU walked Arkansas 11 times and three of the Razorbacks’ RBIs got on base via walks. And in the bottom of the seventh, LSU’s Cam Johnson walked another runner in with the bases loaded.

But the entire night collimated in the bottom of the eighth when Kendall Diggs hit a moon shoot to right-center field to all but seal the win for the Razorbacks.

Arkansas take its third SEC series tomorrow with a win tomorrow, but the Hogs will have a change of pace on Friday as Mason Molina is set to start in place of Brady Tygart. It’ll be his first game-two start with Arkansas, but the former Friday night guy for Texas Tech should have no problem adapting.

Story originally appeared on Razorbacks Wire