Van Horn tabs Hunter Hollan to start opener against Santa Clara
Hunter Hollan has never pitched in the NCAA Tournament before. Well, he will not have until Friday afternoon.
The NJCAA Tournament, though? Yep. Plenty.
The Arkansas left-hander, in his first season with the Razorbacks after arriving in the offseason from junior-college, will get the ball to start the Diamond Hogs’ stint in the Fayetteville Regional against Santa Clara. Arkansas, the top seed, will play No. 4 Santa Clara at 2 p.m.
Hollan has been a staple in the Razorbacks’ rotation since his arrival. No on the roster has started more than his 14 games this year. All year long, he was Arkansas’ second-best among starters, only bested by All-SECer Hagen Smith.
But pitching with a national title in sight isn’t new to Hollan. He struck out 10 batters in five innings last year for San Jacinto College in the Junior College World Series and he pitched in two games in the Series the season before, as a freshman.
Results in recent weeks have been mixed. Hollan was good against LSU last time out in the SEC Tournament, giving up just two runs in 5 1/3 innings out of the bullpen. In the finale regular-season series against Vanderbilt, though, he lasted just 2 2/3 innings, allowing four runs on eight hits.
But it’s the weekend before that showed what Hollan can do when on his game. Against South Carolina, he pitched a complete game five-hitter while giving up just a run and striking out 10.
In his three games against non-SEC opponents – Eastern Illinois, Wright State and Louisana Tech – Hollan pitched 16 2/3 innings, allowing 13 hits, four earned run and he struck out 16.
A win against the Broncos on Friday would set up an Arkansas game against either No. 2 Texas Christian or No. 3 Arizona. A loss would pit the Hogs against that game’s loser.
