After being knocked off its perch atop college baseball after a road series loss to Alabama over the weekend, No. 2 Arkansas (30-5) bounced back in a midweek matchup against a high-major opponent in Texas Tech (26-11) on Tuesday.
It provided an opportunity for Hudson White to face his former school and, sure enough, he provided the game-tying RBI double to help the Razorbacks overcome a 7-0 deficit. Nolan Souza delivered the final blow, with his pinch-hit sacrifice fly in the ninth inning giving Arkansas a 9-8 walk-off win over the Red Raiders.
Now donning Razorback red, White played his first two seasons for the Red Raiders, hitting .294 with an OPS of .942. His surprise entrance into the transfer portal made him one of the most sought-after players in the nation in the offseason, and Dave Van Horn brought him to Fayetteville.
While White’s numbers at Arkansas haven’t been quite as impressive (.247 batting average heading into tonight), the talented catcher has been good enough with his glove to impress Van Horn and stay in the lineup — fending off tough competition from freshman Ryder Helfrick. White has played in 24 of Arkansas’ 35 games, establishing himself as the top option behind the plate.
While there doesn’t seem to be any bad blood between White and his former team, the Fort Worth, Texas, native certainly wanted to perform well against his former teammates — and you best believe the Red Raiders’ pitchers had his name circled on the lineup card.
White’s replacement in the Red Raiders’ lineup, sophomore Dylan Maxcey, has been swinging a hot bat all year long. The 5-foot-9 backstop has a batting average of .365 and an eye-catching OPS of 1.047.
The midweek matchup presented a “get-right” opportunity for Arkansas baseball after a tough weekend in Tuscaloosa where the bats went ice cold. While Van Horn usually fills the Hogs’ non-conference slate with tough opposition to beef up the team’s resume, most of those matchups occur in early-season showcases like the College Baseball Showdown back in February. These games don’t often come so late in the year in the middle of the SEC slate.
~UPDATE~
See our post-game piece here:
LIVE UPDATES – Arkansas vs Texas Tech (Game 1)
Pregame Tidbits
While Arkansas and Texas Tech have faced off just six times in the two program’s histories, there’s been quite a bit of stakes packed into those games. The Razorbacks hold a 5-1 record in the all-time series. Three of those have come in early-season, neutral-site matchups in Houston and Arlington, which the Hogs have won all of. The teams have met once before at Baum-Walker Stadium, a game in which Arkansas won 5-1.
Most notably, the two sides faced off in the College World Series in back-to-back seasons just a few years ago. In 2018, Arkansas defeated the Red Raiders 7-4 during its run to the finals. The following year, Texas Tech ended the Razorbacks’ season with a 5-4 victory to send them home from Omaha.
Arkansas will start sophomore Ben Bybee, who has performed well in limited action this season. Through nine innings on the bump, the 6-foot-6 righty has a 1.00 ERA. Texas Tech will start sophomore lefty Zach Erdman, who holds a 7.24 ERA on the season.
T-1st: Texas Tech 0, Arkansas 0
- Kash rips a grounder to Stovall, who handles it for the first out.
- Bybee strikes out Harrelson swinging.
- Bazzell goes down looking to retire the side in order.
B-1st: Texas Tech 0, Arkansas 0
- Holt smacks a liner directly to the center fielder for the first out.
- Stovall gets a hold of one, but it dies in the wind and gets caught on the warning track.
- Sprague-Lott rips a hard grounder that’s bobbled by Pompey, but he recovers to get the out.
T-2nd: Texas Tech 6, Arkansas 0
- Green smacks one to second, and it takes a bad hop off Stovall’s glove. Scored as a base hit.
- Woodcox flies out to center.
- McGee takes Bybee yard, smacking one into the left field bullpen to open the scoring.
- Pompey hits a hard single into center for a base hit.
- Another hard single into center field by Lopez, and Matt Hobbs comes out for a mound visit.
- Maxsey pokes another single through the hole, and Pompey comes around to score.
- Kash makes it four straight base hits, and another run comes into score. Dave Van Horn is out of the dugout to take the ball.
- Now pitching for Arkansas: RHP Christian Foutch
- Harrelson works a quality AB, fouling off numerous pitches and drawing a walk to load the bases.
- Kash swipes second base, no throw from White.
- Sprague-Lott handles a chopper and fires it home for the force out, saving a run.
- Green ropes a liner into right field, and Edmunson misses on the diving attempt. Two more runs come home.
- Woodcox strikes out swinging to end the nightmare inning.
B-2nd: Texas Tech 6, Arkansas 0
- Aloy grounds out on the first pitch
- McLaughlin gets the first base hit of the day.
- Wagner joins in on the fun with another single. McLaughlin holds up at second.
- White grounds it to third. The Red Raiders get the out at second, but he reaches on a fielders’ choice.
- Jones bloops out to second base, stranding the runners.
T-3rd: Texas Tech 6, Arkansas 0
- McGee gets hit by the pitch.
- Perfectly executed hit and run puts runners on the corners.
- Lopez battles off a few pitches, but strikes out swinging.
- White gunned down Pompey on his steal attempt for the first out.
- Now pitching for the Razorbacks: RHP Gage Wood
- Wood gets the strikeout to end the inning.
B-3rd: Texas Tech 6, Arkansas 0
- Edmunson grounds out to short.
- Holt lines the first pitch directly at the shortstop.
- Stovall grounds out to third.
T-4th: Texas Tech 7, Arkansas 0
- Kash rips the first pitch of the inning down the line for a leadoff double.
- Harrelson strikes out swinging.
- Aloy snags a bullet of a grounder and gets the putout.
- Green grounds it to short, but beats out Aloy’s low throw. Kash comes in to score.
- Woodcox hits it into the “we don’t talk about it” part of foul territory, but McLaughlin makes an over-the-shoulder grab to end the inning.
B-4th: Texas Tech 7, Arkansas 1
- Sprague-Lott works the count full and draws a leadoff walk.
- Aloy strikes out swinging.
- McLaughlin ropes a base hit down the left field line. Sprague-Lott gets to third on the hit and run, and McLaughlin grabs an extra base on the throw to third.
- Wagner pounds a chopper into the ground that slips under the third baseman’s glove, and Sprague-Lott scores on the infield single.
- White hits into a double play to end the inning.
T-5th: Texas Tech 7, Arkansas 1
- McGee goes down swinging.
- Pompey reaches on an infield single. Very close call at first base draws some boos from the crowd.
- Lopez strikes out swinging, but Pompey swipes second base.
- Maxsey pops out to end the inning.
B-5th: Texas Tech 7, Arkansas 7
- Jayson Jones clobbers a ball that caribs off the center-field wall for a double.
- Edmunson wears one and reaches on a HBP. Zach Erdman’s day is done after 4.1 innings.
- Now pitching for Texas Tech: LHP Hudson Luce
- Holt hits a bullet through the left side, and Jones comes in to score.
- Stovall draws a walk to load the bases, and the beers go up on heads.
- Sprague-Lott rips one to the hot corner, but the third baseman snags it, steps on third and guns it to first for the double play. One run comes across.
- Aloy bloops one into no-man’s land in left field for an RBI double.
- Ben McLaughlin gives the Hog Pen a souvenir with a two-run home run, and Arkansas is back in this game.
- Wagner draws a walk to bring the go-ahead run to the plate.
- Two of the four balls in this AB were wild pitches, as the Ric Flair “woo’s” rain down from the crowd.
- Hudson White rips a double down the line to tie the game against his former school.
- Now pitching for Texas Tech: RHP Isaiah Rhodes
- Jayson Jones strikes out to end the six-run inning.
T-6th: Texas Tech 7, Arkansas 7
- Now pitching for the Razorbacks: LHP Parker Coil
- Kash strikes out swinging.
- Double dose of Ks, as Coil gets the better of Harrelson.
- Bazzell chops it to Stovall for the third out, as Coil retires the top of the lineup in order.
B-6th: Texas Tech 7, Arkansas 7
- Edmunson grounds out.
- Holt flies out to right.
- Stovall goes down swinging to retire the side.
T-7th: Texas Tech 8, Arkansas 7
- Now pitching for Arkansas: RHP Will McEntire
- Austin Green’s big day continues, as he sends McEntire’s first pitch into the right field bullpen to retake the lead.
- Woodcox flies out to right.
- McEntire gets his first K of the night for the second out.
- Pompey goes down swinging to end the inning. Time to stretch.
B-7th: Texas Tech 8, Arkansas 7
- Sprague-Lott’s quality AB ends in a well-earned walk.
- Aloy strikes out swinging after taking some big hacks.
- Now pitching for Texas Tech: RHP Derek Bridges
- McLaughlin goes down looking.
- Sprague-Lott advanced to second on a wild pitch.
- Now pitching for Texas Tech: Jacob Rogers
- Two of Rogers’ warmup pitches went sailing over the catcher’s head, to the crowd’s delight.
- Wild thing, indeed. Wagner takes a pitch right in the bony part of his hand…ouch. Runners on first and second.
- White hammers one to center field, but it’s caught short of the warning track to end the inning.
T-8th: Texas Tech 8, Arkansas 7
- McEntire fools Lopez, and he goes down looking.
- Maxcey singles with a liner into center. McEntire’s night is done.
- Now pitching for Arkansas: RHP Gabe Gaeckle
- Kash flies out to left.
- Harrelson gets Gaeckle’d as he goes down swinging to end the inning.
- Maxcey stole second on a close play.
B-8th: Texas Tech 8, Arkansas 8
- Jayson Jones mashes his second leadoff double of the day to start the Hogs off right.
- Edmunson’s patience draws a walk.
- Jones advanced to third on a wild pitch that whistled under Edmunson’s chin.
- Holt strikes out swinging.
- Stovall hits a grounder towards second. The Red Raiders get the out at second, but Stovall beats the throw to first to keep the inning alive and score the tying run.
- Stovall gets thrown out trying to steal second, and the inning’s over.
T-9th: Texas Tech 8, Arkansas 8
- Bazzell flies out to left.
- Green fists one into the middle infield and reaches safely yet again on an infield single.
- Will Burns pinch running.
- Woodcock hits a sharp liner to center, but defensive substitute Ty Wilmsmeyer makes a tough run and catch for the second out.
- McGee flies out to right to end the inning.
B-9th: Texas Tech 8, Arkansas 9
- Now pitching for Texas Tech: RHP Parker Hutrya
- Sprague-Lott reaches on an error after his ground ball skips off McGee’s glove.
- Another error for Texas Tech, as Hutrya stumbles while fielding a dribbler and Pompey bobbles the catch at second. Two on, no out.
- McLaughlin takes a pitch square in his back to load the bases with no outs.
- Nolan Souza on as a pinch hitter.
- Texas Tech subs in a defensive replacement to defend with five infielders.
- Walk-off alert!!! Souza hits a perfect sacrifice fly to right field, and Sprague-Lott races home for the winning run.
FINAL: Arkansas 9, Texas Tech 8
Starting Lineups
| Arkansas Baseball | Texas Tech Baseball |
|---|---|
| 1. Peyton Holt – CF | 1. Gavin Kash – 1B |
| 2. Peyton Stovall – 2B | 2. Gage Harrelson – CF |
| 3. Jared Sprague-Lott – 3B | 3. Kevin Bazzell – DH |
| 4. Wehiwa Aloy – SS | 4. Austin Green – RF |
| 5. Ben McLaughlin – 1B | 5. Drew Woodcox – LF |
| 6. Jack Wagner – DH | 6. Cade McGee – 3B |
| 7. Hudson White – C | 7. TJ Pompey – 2B |
| 8. Jayson Jones – LF | 8. Tracer Lopez – SS |
| 9. Will Edmunson – RF | 9. Dylan Maxcey – C |
| Pitching: RHP Ben Bybee | Pitching: LHP Zach Erdman |
How to Watch Arkansas vs Texas Tech (Game 1)
Date: Tuesday, April 15
Location: Baum-Walker Stadium (Fayetteville, Ark.)
First Pitch: 7 p.m.
TV/Stream: ESPN2
***
More coverage of Arkansas baseball from BoAS…
