NORTH LITTLE ROCK– No. 6 Arkansas (33-12) overcame a three-run deficit in the eighth but fell to Lipscomb (24-21), 8-6, in extra innings on Tuesday night at Dickey-Stephens Park in front of an announced crowd of 9,346.
The Hogs, playing at the home of the Seattle Mariners’ Double-A affiliate Arkansas Travelers for the 12th time in history, are now 10-2 in North Little Rock. Arkansas’ only other loss at Dickey-Stephens Park came against Memphis in 2015.
Harold Coll’s monstrous three-run homer in the first inning helped the Razorbacks jump out to a quick 3-0 lead. Coll’s third home run of the year left his bat at 104 miles per hour and traveled 428 feet, banging off the scoreboard in left.
The early run support helped Arkansas starter Parker Coil work his way through two scoreless innings. The true freshman left-hander did not allow a hit and struck out two before turning the game over to the bullpen.
Lipscomb chipped away at Arkansas’ lead with a run in the third and two more in the fourth, evening the game at three apiece. The Bisons broke through for three runs in the top half of the sixth to open a 6-3 lead.
The Hogs, however, would not go quietly. With the bases loaded and Brady Slavens pinch hitting in the bottom of the eighth, Lipscomb pitcher Matthew Bohnert threw back-to-back wild pitches that, paired with a throwing error, brought home three Arkansas runs.
Ben McLaughlin, who finished with a team-leading two hits, scored on Bohnert’s first wild pitch before Jayson Jones, who finished with a team-high three walks, scored on the throwing error to cut the deficit to one. Peyton Holt scored on the very next pitch, scampering home on Bohnert’s second consecutive wild pitch to tie the game at six.
That was as close as the Hogs would get. Lipscomb scored twice in the 11th against Arkansas’ bullpen to earn an 8-6 win.
On the mound, Zack Morris and Austin Ledbetter both shined in relief. Morris threw two scoreless innings with four strikeouts, while Ledbetter tossed a career-long four scoreless innings from the seventh to the 10th and struck out one.
Arkansas returns to SEC play this weekend, traveling to Starkville, Miss., to square off against Mississippi State. The Razorbacks are 14-7 in league play and enter the weekend 1.5 games behind LSU in the Western Division standings.
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Note to Our Readers: The previous story was sourced directly and in its entirety from the University of Arkansas Office of Communications, Oliver Grigg.
