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arkansas.rivals.com
In what began as a pitchers’ duel between two SEC aces, senior Connor Noland outlasted Hunter Barco with seven scoreless innings on the mound.
The Razorbacks came within two outs of recording their first shutout of 2022, but a garbage-time run from the Gators led to a series-opening win by a large margin with Arkansas winning 8-1.
“We did what we needed to do, and that’s come in here and win Game 1 to give us a chance to get off to a really good start in the series,” head coach Dave Van Horn said.
Both starters came out of the gate with their best stuff, as the minimum number of batters were faced through three innings on both sides. Connor Noland allowed a hit to the Gators’ leadoff man in the top of the first, but an incredible scoop on a pitch in the dirt and throw to second from catcher Michael Turner caught the prospective base thief.
The Arkansas bats struggled initially, as Barco’s elite pitch repertoire lived up to high praise early in the game.
Their offensive production began in the top of the fourth, riding a couple free passes and a double steal to put runners in scoring position for Turner. Although he didn’t make solid contact, a two-out 70-foot single to the left side was good for an RBI single that gave the Hogs a lead they would not surrender the remainder of the night.
That was the beginning of Barco’s unraveling while Noland, on the other hand, continued his efficient work, pounding the zone with strikes and inducing soft contact with a high percentage of breaking balls.
Barco’s emotions boiled over when a few calls by the home plate umpire went against him.
“We almost broke through in the fourth with a really big inning, but we did get Barco’s pitch count up, and obviously it affected him later in the game where we took advantage of that and got him out of the game,” Van Horn said. “You could tell Barco was frustrated, but the zone was what it was. It was the same all night.”
After freshman Peyton Stovall led off the top of the fifth by getting hit with the first pitch of the inning, a sacrifice bunt from Zack Gregory shifted him into scoring position for Cayden Wallace. The star sophomore executed with an RBI single into right field, extending the lead to two heading into the half-way point of the game.
Graduate transfer Chris Lanzilli added some extra insurance an inning later with a leadoff shot into the visitors’ bullpen.
“Yeah, I hit a fastball,” Lanzilli said when asked about the pitch he took yard. “Was kind of sitting on that and ended up getting it. I know he was a little frustrated, showing his emotions a little bit.”
Barco followed that up by issuing a single to Turner, throwing a wild pitch and walking Jalen Battles on five pitches — at which point his night was over.
It was only the third time the Florida ace has lasted five innings or less. In those outings, the Gators are now 0-3 with Thursday’s loss.
Arkansas ended up stranding three runners on base that inning when reliever Tyler Nesbitt worked out of a jam to keep their deficit to three, but Noland continued his dominance in the back end of the sixth.
Nesbitt was unable to get through his next inning of work, yielding to Blake Purnell — who had the lowest ERA on Florida’s staff at 1.11 prior to the game – and keeping the Hogs scoreless with super senior Braydon Webb on second base after he singled and swiped a bag.
Brady Slavens collected his first hit of the night with a double down the right field line in the top of the eighth, but the Arkansas bats were once again unable to capitalize following another Florida pitching change.
Noland’s night came to an end after his seventh inning of work, giving way to super senior Zebulon Vermillion for the remainder of the contest.
Vermillion got the first batter, BT Riopelle, to ground to short for the first out, but immediately got into trouble with the next two batters. A Kendrick Calilao single and Josh Rivera walk brought the tying run to the plate for the Gators.
The veteran hurler forced back-to-back pop outs to get out of the jam unscathed, though, and preserved a three-run lead for his team heading into the final inning.
That was the point where the game broke open, with the Diamond Hogs more than doubling their previous run production in nine plate appearances.
Florida’s fifth arm, Nick Ficarrotta, was called into the game to work the top of the ninth but didn’t even manage to record an out before his night ended.
Wallace stepped into the box hunting for a pitch out of the gate and struck gold, nailing Ficarrotta’s first pitch well over the left-center wall for the Hogs’ fourth run of the night.
Webb continued his red-hot streak immediately after, sending another solo shot to nearly the exact spot as Wallace to go back-to-back with the third baseman.
This showcase of power rattled the right-hander, as he went on to peg junior Robert Moore, allow a single to Lanzilli and surrender an RBI double to Turner in order following the Webb dinger.
That forced Florida head coach Kevin O’Sullivan to make his fifth and final pitching change of the night, running Anthony Ursitti into the game to collect their final three outs. He was able to accomplish that, albeit while allowing two more Razorbacks to cross home.
Battles hit a sacrifice fly to right field, bringing Lanzilli home for the seventh run. After a pinch-hit strikeout from freshman Drake Varnado, Stovall scratched the final run for Arkansas with an RBI single through the middle.
Vermillion returned to the mound to put the finishing touches on the blowout. A leadoff double and subsequent balk put a runner on third for the Gators with no outs. Sterlin Thompson put the shutout to bed with an RBI groundout to Stovall, but that was a small consolation prize on a game that ended quickly after that with Vermillion’s second strikeout of the night. Those two innings of work were good for his second save of 2022.
Here are some other takeaways from the seven-run victory…
Noland turns in nearly flawless outing
Arkansas’ ace had a tall task on his hands on Friday night, faced with dueling a southpaw who is currently listed as the 53rd-ranked MLB Draft prospect according to MLB.com.
Noland took advantage of the spotlight, turning in his best outing yet in the 2022 season. Through seven scoreless innings, the veteran only allowed Florida batters to notch one hit and take one free pass while striking out seven on the way to his fifth win.
Despite having one less day of rest than normal, Noland was able to shrug off the minor inconvenience and deliver as usual.
“It’s no different than any other week,” Noland said. “It’s one less day, but my schedule’s the same. Just trying to stay consistent is the biggest deal.”
He was able to accomplish this feat by working both sides of the strike zone and utilizing his off-speed offerings more frequently.
“He’s just doing an outstanding job of throwing strikes and using both sides of the plate and pitching backwards,” Van Horn said. “Early, they were looking hard and got soft, and he kind of flipped it on them toward the end. He just kept them a little confused.”
Knowing the Razorback bats would have to work hard to get runs across the plate, Noland was prepared to trust his SEC-best defense to shred through the Florida lineup.
“It’s a big deal,” Noland said when asked about opposing Barco. “I knew he was going to be good. You hear a lot about him, so I knew I had to bring my ‘A’ game and keep them off the board as long as I could to give our offense to get a chance to get ahead in the game.”
The leadoff single Noland allowed to Colby Halter was the only knock he surrendered on the night, holding the next 21 Gators hitless through his seven innings of work.
The lone free pass he handed out in the bottom of the fourth to Jud Fabian was smack in the middle of two very impressive stretches, retiring ten-consecutive batters prior to it and twelve in a row after.
Although he had a start in the abbreviated season where he didn’t allow an earned run, Thursday’s start was his first since his freshman year on May 11, 2019, against LSU in which he didn’t allow a single run to cross the plate — earned or unearned.
(story continues below)
HawgBeat - Key takeaways, box score from Arkansas' Game 1 win at Florida
HawgBeat brings you a recap of and the key takeaways from Arkansas' 8-1 win over Florida on Thursday.
arkansas.rivals.com
In what began as a pitchers’ duel between two SEC aces, senior Connor Noland outlasted Hunter Barco with seven scoreless innings on the mound.
The Razorbacks came within two outs of recording their first shutout of 2022, but a garbage-time run from the Gators led to a series-opening win by a large margin with Arkansas winning 8-1.
“We did what we needed to do, and that’s come in here and win Game 1 to give us a chance to get off to a really good start in the series,” head coach Dave Van Horn said.
Both starters came out of the gate with their best stuff, as the minimum number of batters were faced through three innings on both sides. Connor Noland allowed a hit to the Gators’ leadoff man in the top of the first, but an incredible scoop on a pitch in the dirt and throw to second from catcher Michael Turner caught the prospective base thief.
The Arkansas bats struggled initially, as Barco’s elite pitch repertoire lived up to high praise early in the game.
Their offensive production began in the top of the fourth, riding a couple free passes and a double steal to put runners in scoring position for Turner. Although he didn’t make solid contact, a two-out 70-foot single to the left side was good for an RBI single that gave the Hogs a lead they would not surrender the remainder of the night.
That was the beginning of Barco’s unraveling while Noland, on the other hand, continued his efficient work, pounding the zone with strikes and inducing soft contact with a high percentage of breaking balls.
Barco’s emotions boiled over when a few calls by the home plate umpire went against him.
“We almost broke through in the fourth with a really big inning, but we did get Barco’s pitch count up, and obviously it affected him later in the game where we took advantage of that and got him out of the game,” Van Horn said. “You could tell Barco was frustrated, but the zone was what it was. It was the same all night.”
After freshman Peyton Stovall led off the top of the fifth by getting hit with the first pitch of the inning, a sacrifice bunt from Zack Gregory shifted him into scoring position for Cayden Wallace. The star sophomore executed with an RBI single into right field, extending the lead to two heading into the half-way point of the game.
Graduate transfer Chris Lanzilli added some extra insurance an inning later with a leadoff shot into the visitors’ bullpen.
“Yeah, I hit a fastball,” Lanzilli said when asked about the pitch he took yard. “Was kind of sitting on that and ended up getting it. I know he was a little frustrated, showing his emotions a little bit.”
Barco followed that up by issuing a single to Turner, throwing a wild pitch and walking Jalen Battles on five pitches — at which point his night was over.
It was only the third time the Florida ace has lasted five innings or less. In those outings, the Gators are now 0-3 with Thursday’s loss.
Arkansas ended up stranding three runners on base that inning when reliever Tyler Nesbitt worked out of a jam to keep their deficit to three, but Noland continued his dominance in the back end of the sixth.
Nesbitt was unable to get through his next inning of work, yielding to Blake Purnell — who had the lowest ERA on Florida’s staff at 1.11 prior to the game – and keeping the Hogs scoreless with super senior Braydon Webb on second base after he singled and swiped a bag.
Brady Slavens collected his first hit of the night with a double down the right field line in the top of the eighth, but the Arkansas bats were once again unable to capitalize following another Florida pitching change.
Noland’s night came to an end after his seventh inning of work, giving way to super senior Zebulon Vermillion for the remainder of the contest.
Vermillion got the first batter, BT Riopelle, to ground to short for the first out, but immediately got into trouble with the next two batters. A Kendrick Calilao single and Josh Rivera walk brought the tying run to the plate for the Gators.
The veteran hurler forced back-to-back pop outs to get out of the jam unscathed, though, and preserved a three-run lead for his team heading into the final inning.
That was the point where the game broke open, with the Diamond Hogs more than doubling their previous run production in nine plate appearances.
Florida’s fifth arm, Nick Ficarrotta, was called into the game to work the top of the ninth but didn’t even manage to record an out before his night ended.
Wallace stepped into the box hunting for a pitch out of the gate and struck gold, nailing Ficarrotta’s first pitch well over the left-center wall for the Hogs’ fourth run of the night.
Webb continued his red-hot streak immediately after, sending another solo shot to nearly the exact spot as Wallace to go back-to-back with the third baseman.
This showcase of power rattled the right-hander, as he went on to peg junior Robert Moore, allow a single to Lanzilli and surrender an RBI double to Turner in order following the Webb dinger.
That forced Florida head coach Kevin O’Sullivan to make his fifth and final pitching change of the night, running Anthony Ursitti into the game to collect their final three outs. He was able to accomplish that, albeit while allowing two more Razorbacks to cross home.
Battles hit a sacrifice fly to right field, bringing Lanzilli home for the seventh run. After a pinch-hit strikeout from freshman Drake Varnado, Stovall scratched the final run for Arkansas with an RBI single through the middle.
Vermillion returned to the mound to put the finishing touches on the blowout. A leadoff double and subsequent balk put a runner on third for the Gators with no outs. Sterlin Thompson put the shutout to bed with an RBI groundout to Stovall, but that was a small consolation prize on a game that ended quickly after that with Vermillion’s second strikeout of the night. Those two innings of work were good for his second save of 2022.
Here are some other takeaways from the seven-run victory…
Noland turns in nearly flawless outing
Arkansas’ ace had a tall task on his hands on Friday night, faced with dueling a southpaw who is currently listed as the 53rd-ranked MLB Draft prospect according to MLB.com.
Noland took advantage of the spotlight, turning in his best outing yet in the 2022 season. Through seven scoreless innings, the veteran only allowed Florida batters to notch one hit and take one free pass while striking out seven on the way to his fifth win.
Despite having one less day of rest than normal, Noland was able to shrug off the minor inconvenience and deliver as usual.
“It’s no different than any other week,” Noland said. “It’s one less day, but my schedule’s the same. Just trying to stay consistent is the biggest deal.”
He was able to accomplish this feat by working both sides of the strike zone and utilizing his off-speed offerings more frequently.
“He’s just doing an outstanding job of throwing strikes and using both sides of the plate and pitching backwards,” Van Horn said. “Early, they were looking hard and got soft, and he kind of flipped it on them toward the end. He just kept them a little confused.”
Knowing the Razorback bats would have to work hard to get runs across the plate, Noland was prepared to trust his SEC-best defense to shred through the Florida lineup.
“It’s a big deal,” Noland said when asked about opposing Barco. “I knew he was going to be good. You hear a lot about him, so I knew I had to bring my ‘A’ game and keep them off the board as long as I could to give our offense to get a chance to get ahead in the game.”
The leadoff single Noland allowed to Colby Halter was the only knock he surrendered on the night, holding the next 21 Gators hitless through his seven innings of work.
The lone free pass he handed out in the bottom of the fourth to Jud Fabian was smack in the middle of two very impressive stretches, retiring ten-consecutive batters prior to it and twelve in a row after.
Although he had a start in the abbreviated season where he didn’t allow an earned run, Thursday’s start was his first since his freshman year on May 11, 2019, against LSU in which he didn’t allow a single run to cross the plate — earned or unearned.
(story continues below)
