HawgBeat - Fayetteville Regional Preview: Louisiana Tech
HawgBeat does an in-depth scouting report on the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs and how they stack up with Arkansas baseball.
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The Arkansas Razorbacks (43-14) are set to host the Fayetteville Regional as the No. 5 national seed in the 2024 NCAA Baseball Tournament this weekend at Baum-Walker Stadium.
While the first squad the Diamond Hogs will face is the 4-seed Southeast Missouri State Redhawks, the Fayetteville Regional also features the 2-seed Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, which will begin regional play against 3-seed Kansas State.
Led by Conference USA Co-Coach of the Year Lane Burroughs, the Bulldogs (44-17) won their conference with an 18-6 record in league play this year. Louisiana Tech made a run to the CUSA Tournament title game, but fell short against Dallas Baptist, 17-10, on Sunday.
"You’re going to have to bow up and face great arms against Arkansas," Burroughs said Monday. "I don’t know if there is such thing as a good or bad draw, there are only 64 left playing and they are all pretty good. The fact we are still playing is what matters."
Former Razorback and Conference USA Player of the Year Ethan Bates will be making his second trip back to Fayetteville, this time as the nation's leader in saves (17). The Hot Springs native returned to his home state last year with the Bulldogs, who were swept by the Hogs in three games from March 10-12, 2023.
Bates was also named First Team All CUSA as a utility player, as he is also slashing .343/.438/.622 with 15 home runs and a team-high 74 runs batted in.
"We knew Ethan had a great arm and power from the left side as a hitter," Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn said Monday. "But when he got to Tech, it’s all come out. As an older player and confident, he’s been lights out. Maybe one of the best, is definitely one of the best two-way players in the country."
Louisiana Tech's offense also features two more First Team All CUSA selections in Dalton Davis (15 HR, 53 RBI) and Cole McConnell (18 HR, 71 RBI).
Ace left-hander Luke Nichols was a First Team All CUSA selection for the Bulldogs this year. The 6-foot-1, 200-pound junior owns a 3.74 ERA with 27 walks and 81 strikeouts in 77.0 innings pitched. Senior righty Sam Broderson has been great out of the bullpen with a 2.47 ERA, 37 walks and 95 strikeouts across 32 appearances. As a staff, the Bulldogs rank 51st nationally with a team ERA of 4.99.
Louisiana Tech will begin regional play Friday evening at 7 p.m. CT against the 3-seed Kansas State Wildcats at Baum-Walker Stadium in Fayetteville. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
Arkansas and Southeast Missouri State will play the first game of the Fayetteville Regional on Friday at 2 p.m. CT and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
Fayetteville Regional Preview: Southeast Missouri State
Below is a comparison of the Arkansas and Louisiana Tech's metrics and stats, as well as a look at the projected starting lineup and noteworthy pitchers for the Bulldogs...
Team Metrics Comparison
| Metric | Louisiana Tech (44-17) | Arkansas (43-14) |
|---|---|---|
| RPI | 31 | 5 |
| Strength of Schedule | 88 | 14 |
| Non-Conference RPI | 61 | 1 |
| Non-Conference SOS | 87 | 44 |
| Home Record | 29-7 | 33-3 |
| Road Record | 12-10 | 7-8 |
| Neutral Record | 3-0 | 3-3 |
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Team Stats Comparison
| Statistic | Louisiana Tech (44-17) | Arkansas (43-14) |
|---|---|---|
| Batting Average | .299 | .268 |
| Runs Scored | 458 | 375 |
| Home Runs | 88 | 77 |
| ERA | 4.99 | 3.66 |
| Strikeouts | 604 | 670 |
| Walks | 247 | 212 |
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Louisiana Tech Projected Starting Lineup (based on 5/25 lineup)
1. 1B Dalton Davis — Senior, R/R, 6'0", 210 pounds
2024 stats: 213 AB, 56 R, 70 H, 11 2B, 1 3B, 15 HR, 53 RBI, 33 BB, 20 K, 8 SB, .329/.428/.601
2. CF Cole McConnell — Senior, L/L, 6'1", 210 pounds
2024 stats: 242 AB, 66 R, 92 H, 17 2B, 1 3B, 18 HR, 71 RBI, 28 BB, 68 K, 1 SB, .380/.462/.682
3. DH Ethan Bates — Senior, L/R, 6'0", 185 pounds
2024 stats: 251 AB, 66 R, 86 H, 21 2B, 2 3B, 15 HR, 74 RBI, 34 BB, 20 K, 2 SB, .343/.438/.622
4. C Jorge Corona — Senior, R/R, 6'2", 215 pounds
2024 stats: 243 AB, 43 R, 77 H, 14 2B, 16 HR, 51 RBI, 24 BB, 46 K, 8 SB, .317/.385/.572
5. 2B Michael Ballard — Senior, R/R, 6'0", 195 pounds
2024 stats: 238 AB, 33 R, 74 H, 11 2B, 4 HR, 37 RBI, 31 BB, 40 K, 2 SB, .311/.394/.408
6. LF Adarius Myers — Redshirt Senior, R/R, 5'9", 171 pounds
2024 stats: 252 AB, 35 R, 76 H, 18 2B, 3 HR, 31 RBI, 27 BB, 43 K, 8 SB, .302/.376/.409
7. 3B Grant Comeaux— Redshirt Freshman, R/R, 5'10", 175 pounds
2024 stats: 193 AB, 28 R, 50 H, 7 2B, 3 HR, 27 RBI, 8 BB, 52 K, .259/.323/.342
8. RF Will Safford — Redshirt Junior, L/R, 5'8", 173 pounds
2024 stats: 131 AB, 24 R, 26 H, 4 2B, 7 HR, 24 RBI, 22 BB, 37 K, 3 SB, .198/.329/.389
9. SS Kasten Furr — Senior, R/R, 5'9", 178 pounds
2024 stats: 228 AB, 70 R, 63 H, 6 2B, 2 3B, 5 HR, 28 RBI, 34 BB, 40 K, 4 SB, .276/.417/.386
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Louisiana Tech Noteworthy Pitchers
LHP Luke Nichols — Junior, 6'1", 200 pounds
2024 stats: 16 APP, 15 GS, 3.74 ERA, 4-3 W/L, 77.0 IP, 69 H, 40 R, 32 ER, 27 BB, 81 K
RHP Reed Smith — Senior, 6'2", 225 pounds
2024 stats: 18 APP, 16 GS, 5.92 ERA, 7-4 W/L, 73.0 IP, 85 H, 50 R, 48 ER, 17 BB, 76 K
RHP Turner Swistak — Redshirt Junior, 6'2", 225 pounds
2024 stats: 16 APP, 13 GS, 7.98 ERA, 5-3 W/L, 53.0 IP, 68 H, 52 R, 47 ER, 17 BB, 53 K
RHP Ethan Bates — Senior, 5'11", 185 pounds
2024 stats: 35 APP, 0 GS, 3.50 ERA, 2-1 W/L, 17 SV, 43.2 IP, 28 H, 19 R, 17 ER, 20 BB, 52 K
RHP Sam Brodersen — Senior, 6'1", 190 pounds
2024 stats: 32 APP, 0 GS, 2.47 ERA, 8-1 W/L, 1 SV, 54.2 IP, 29 H, 17 R, 15 ER, 37 BB, 95 K
RHP Grant Hubka — Senior, 6'4", 220 pounds
2024 stats: 27 APP, 5 GS, 3.74 ERA, 4-0 W/L, 55.1 IP, 41 H, 25 R, 23 ER, 33 BB, 67 K
LHP Connor Nation — Junior, 5'11", 185 pounds
2024 stats: 21 APP, 5 GS, 4.19 ERA, 5-0 W/L, 34.1 IP, 41 H, 21 R, 16 ER, 11 BB, 31 K
RHP Blake Hooks — Junior, 6'0", 195 pounds
2024 stats: 24 APP, 0 GS, 4.88 ERA, 1-0 W/L, 31.1 IP, 31 H, 20 R, 17 ER, 16 BB, 29 K
RHP Jacob Havern — Sophomore, 6'6", 180 pounds
2024 stats: 18 APP, 2 GS, 4.61 ERA, 3-3 W/L, 27.1 IP, 28 H, 15 R, 14 ER, 13 BB, 28 K
