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Two-and-done: Arkansas baseball eliminated by Kentucky in SEC Tournament

jackson fuller, fort smith southwest times record
·3 min read

HOOVER, Ala. — Arkansas baseball's tenure at the 2024 SEC Tournament lasted about 24 hours thanks to two quick losses, with Kentucky sending the Razorbacks home Thursday.

The Wildcats (40-13) handed Hagen Smith his first defeat of the season in a 9-6 victory over the second-seeded Razorbacks (43-14). Kentucky's Ryan Waldschmidt hit a pair of home runs as Kentucky scratched across 10 hits.

The Wildcats will face the loser of LSU and South Carolina on Friday in the quarterfinals, and Arkansas has now lost three straight games for the first time all season.

Here are four observations from the Arkansas loss.

Dave Van Horn takes no risks with Hagen Smith

Smith (9-1) got the start Thursday, but he only logged two innings and 36 pitches, giving up two unearned runs and striking out four batters.

More: Arkansas baseball coach Dave Van Horn wants Kendall Diggs to forget recent slump

More: Arkansas baseball bracketology: Where Hogs stand in 2024 NCAA Tournament bracket projections

Smith is the most important player on the roster, and Van Horn didn't let the lefty exhaust much energy with the all-important NCAA Tournament beginning next week. In the grand scheme of the postseason, today's loss has no real effect on Arkansas' chances of winning a national title.

With the four strikeouts, Smith now sits just one punch out behind David Walling's single-season Arkansas record of 155, set in 1999.

Peyton Holt's big day isn't enough

The senior outfielder had his first two-homer game as a Razorback Thursday, driving in four runs and providing a spark for an otherwise dormant offense.

Arkansas left eight runners on base and its only other runs came on an RBI groundout by Wehiwa Aloy and a solo homer off the bat of Jared Sprague-Lott. Kendall Diggs went 0-for-4, and the offense was unable to create serious momentum before the regionals.

May 22 2024; Hoover, AL, USA; A hard-hit ball eludes Arkansas second baseman Peyton Stovall in the game with South Carolina at the Hoover Met during the SEC Tournament.
May 22 2024; Hoover, AL, USA; A hard-hit ball eludes Arkansas second baseman Peyton Stovall in the game with South Carolina at the Hoover Met during the SEC Tournament.

Errors haunt Hogs

Arkansas made two costly errors in the first inning, with Hagen Smith producing an errant pickoff attempt and Hudson White making a throwing error trying to throw out a Kentucky runner stealing third. Both runners came across to score.

Another error in the seventh inning led to an unearned run. The Hogs entered the day ranked sixth nationally in fielding percentage, but they committed five errors across two days in Hoover.

A step back for Gage Wood

The sophomore righty came out of the bullpen and was hit hard, allowing two homers and four earned runs in 3 2/3 innings. He felt like a lock to be one of the starting pitchers next weekend, but Van Horn will have some decisions to make regarding Wood and the entire pitching staff for the regionals.

One thing working in Wood's favor is his ability to throw strikes. Other potential starters Brady Tygart and Mason Molina have struggled with control down the stretch, but Wood didn't walk a Kentucky batter and has three walks in his last 19 innings.

Tygart and Molina both pitched in relief Thursday. Tygart yielded three runs and recorded just three outs, while Molina logged two scoreless innings.

This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Arkansas baseball eliminated by Kentucky in SEC Tournament