Busy week opens with series vs. SEMO

FAYETTEVILLE – Arkansas continues its toughest stretch of the season when it faces Southeast Missouri State on Tuesday and Wednesday to open a five-game homestand. Game times both days are set for 6:35 p.m.Tuesday’s contest will be available on the RazorVision portal at ArkansasRazorbacks.com, while Wednesday’s game will be televised by CST. Fans can listen to both games on the Razorback Baseball Radio Network from IMG College. Three-time Arkansas Sportscaster of the Year Chuck Barrett (play-by-play) and former Arkansas Sports Information Director Rick Schaeffer (analyst) will call the action. A live blog and live stats of the game will also be available on ArkansasRazorbacks.com.

Single-game tickets for both midweek contests¬ are still available. Tickets are $10 for reserved seats and can be purchased by calling 1-800-982-HOGS (4647), by visiting the online ticket center at ArkansasRazorbacks.com and on gameday at Baum Stadium, while supplies last.Arkansas, ranked as high as 16th in the country, is 29-13 on the season. The Razorbacks are coming off a series loss at Georgia over the weekend. After winning the series opener on Friday, Arkansas dropped the last two games of the series, including losing Sunday’s series finale in heartbreaking fashion, allowing three runs in the bottom of the ninth. Bo Bigham led the Razorbacks offensive in the series, hitting .462 with two RBI, while Dominic Ficociello batted .455 with a homer and four RBI. James McCann also hit better than .400 in the series, swinging the bat at a .417 clip with a RBI.Ficociello leads Arkansas with a .338 batting average on the season with two homers and a team-high tying 35 RBI. McCann is hitting .314 on the year and has six homers and 25 RBI. Kyle Robinson is batting .306 with a team-high seven homers and 35 RBI. Arkansas is scheduled to throw a pair of freshman right handers against SEMO. Brandon Moore will start Tuesday’s game. Moore is 2-1 with a 3.97 ERA on the season. On Wednesday, Ryne Stanek will get the ball. Stanek has a 2-1 record with a 4.62 ERA.

Freshmen Barrett Astinand Nolan Sanburn are tied for the team lead in appearances with 19 each. Astin has a 4-1 record with a 3.00 ERA, while Sanburn, a nominee for the NCBWA Stopper of the Year award, has eight saves with a 2-3 record and a 3.24 ERA.Redshirt sophomore Trent Daniel has pitched in 17 games and is 2-0 with a 2.05 ERA.Southeast Missouri State enters the midweek series with a 27-16 overall record. The Redhawks have been on a roll in recent games, winning 11 of their last 13 contests, including taking two of three at Murray State last weekend. SEMO is 17-10 in non-conference games and has wins over Louisiana-Lafayette and Missouri State. As a team, Southeast Missouri State is hitting .316 on the season, while the Redhawk pitching staff has a 4.65 ERA.

The Redhawks have seven regulars that are hitting .300 or better this season. Trenton Moses leads SEMO at the plate with a .396 batting average, nine home runs and 42 RBI. Michael Adamson is hitting .362 with six round trippers and 33 RBI and is tied for the team lead with 10 RBI. Casey Jones is swinging the bat at a .331 clip with three homers and 32 RBI.

Southeast Missouri State is projected to start a pair of left handers in the midweek series. Ryan Prickett will make his first start of the season on Tuesday night. Prickett has made 16 appearances this season, all in relief, and has a 1-0 record with a save and a 4.64 ERA. In the second game of the series, Jordan Underwood, SEMO’s Friday night starter, will toe the rubber. Underwood is 4-0 with a 4.65 ERA in 11 starts.

Out of the bullpen, Logan Mahon has pitched in 17 games and leads the team with seven saves to go along with a 4-3 record and a 1.98 ERA. Mahon has struck out 45 in 36.1 innings of work. Corey Harness has the lowest ERA on the team with a 0.87 ERA and a 2-0 record in 10 appearances. Shae Simmons has pitched in a team-best 18 games and has four saves with a 0-4 record and a 5.00 ERA.

Arkansas and Southeast Missouri State have met seven times previously with the Razorbacks holding a slight 4-3 edge. The two teams have not met since the 2002 season, when SEMO took two games from Arkansas.

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