HOOVER, Ala. — Arkansas has plenty of time to rest up for the NCAA Tournament.
That’s what happens when a team scores one run in 18 innings and is eliminated in two games at the SEC Tournament.
Arkansas became the first team to leave the tournament Wednesday after the sixth-seeded Razorbacks lost 2-0 to ninth-seeded Ole Miss in an elimination game at Regions Field. The defeat followed a 9-1 loss to Mississippi State on Tuesday that sent Arkansas to the losers’ bracket of the 10-team SEC Tournament.
Arkansas (39-19) returned home to await Monday’s announcement of the 64-team field for the NCAA Tournament. Arkansas went 2-2 last season at the Tempe (Ariz.) Regional.
Ole Miss held Arkansas scoreless on six hits Wednesday as the Razorbacks went 0 for 2 in the SEC Tournament for the fourth time in eight years. The poor offensive effort Wednesday followed a similar performance Tuesday, when the Razorbacks were held to seven hits in a 9-1 loss to Mississippi State.
Arkansas’ problems at the plate came on the heels of a series sweep at Tennessee, where the Razorbacks piled up 26 runs in three games. Arkansas’ only run at the SEC Tournament came in the sixth inning of Tuesday’s game when Matt Vinson hit a two-out, RBI single.
“We didn’t swing the bat well [Tuesday], then we came in and picked up where we left off,” Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said. “There’s some older guys that’s got to get it going. We just can’t depend on some of these young guys who are in the lineup.”
Freshman Brian Anderson had two hits for the Razorbacks, who hit into a double play and left seven runners on base. Ole Miss had eight hits and left 10 runners on base.
Mike Mayers (5-3) earned the victory for Ole Miss (35-23) over DJ Baxendale (7-4), who went six innings after he was knocked out in the fourth inning in a loss in Oxford, Miss., earlier this season. Mayers, who beat Arkansas 1-0 on April 21, pitched seven scoreless innings on Wednesday.
Brett Huber threw two scoreless in-nings to pick up his 10th save of the season.
“Mike Mayers was tremendous, then Brett Huber comes in and closed the door for us,” Ole Miss Coach Mike Bianco said. “I’m just proud of the way we hung in there and won because it’s been a tough 10 days.”
Ole Miss was in danger of being eliminated after the Rebels dropped their fifth consecutive game with a 2-0 loss to Kentucky on Tuesday. It was the second shutout in four games for Ole Miss, which ended the regular season by getting swept by Vanderbilt.
“We scored only two runs, but we felt a lot better offensively today,” said Alex Yarbrough, who went 3 for 4 to lead Ole Miss. “We haven’t been cashing in when we do get chances, but we hit some balls hard and put some guys on base.”
Baxendale struck out five and walked three while holding Ole Miss to a run in the fourth. Zach Kirksey put the Rebels ahead 1-0 when he led off the fourth with a triple over the head of Matt Vinson in center field and scored on a groundout by Sikes Orvis.
Ole Miss added another run off Colby Suggs in the seventh inning on consecutive singles by Yarbrough, Tanner Mathis and Matt Snyder and a sacrifice fly by Kirksey. Suggs avoided more trouble when here tired Auston Bousfield on a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning.
“Baxendale is so good, and he’s pitched in so many big games for them,” Bianco said. “We needed a little lift, and fortunately Yarbroughand Kirksey swung it great today.”
Arkansas had a chance to grab the early lead in the top of the third. Jake Wise began the inning with a double, and after the next two batters struck out, Dominic Ficociello was intentionally walked to put runners on first and second. But Ole Miss escaped trouble when Matt Reynolds hit a grounder to third to end the inning.
“Not to take anything away from Reynolds, but he came out of the game [Tuesday] and they weren’t sure whether he was going to start,” Bianco said. “Rather than mess around with Ficociello, we decided to just go after Reynolds and hope for the best.”
Baxendale pitched out of a jam in the fifth inning whenOle Miss loaded the bases with one out. The right-hander walked two batters and gave up a single to Yarbrough before getting consecutive strikeouts against Kirksey and Bousfield to end the inning.
Baxendale also enticed aninning-ending groundout from Orvis in the first inning after Ole Miss had put two men onMISSISSIPPI STATE 3, LSU 2
HOOVER, Ala. - Demarcus Henderson drove in Mitch Slauter with a sixth-inning single to give Mississippi State (36-21) a victory over top-seeded LSU (42-15).
Bulldogs starter Chris Stratton (11-1) struck out 8 and allowed 5 hits over 6 innings. Jonathan Holder struck out two in the ninth to post his eighth save.
LSU used seven pitchers, with none lasting more than 2 2/3 innings. Joe Broussard (4-1), who gave up the game-winning hit to Henderson, took the loss.
elimination game, while MSU will take on Kentucky.
AUBURN 3, GEORGIA 2
HOOVER, Ala. - Justin Bryant hit a home run and threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings of late relief to help Auburn (31-27) beat Georgia (31-26).
Georgia trailed 3-0 in the eighth before scoring twice on RBI singles by Nelson Ward and Conor Welton.
Bryant, Auburn’s designated hitter, came in to pitch and struck out Joey Delmonico to end the eighth. Then in the ninth he got Colby May to line out to end the game with the bases loaded.
The Tigers will play South Carolina or Vanderbilt in today’s third round. The loss knocked Georgia out of the doubleelimination tournament.
VANDERBILT 3, SOUTH CAROLINA 2
HOOVER, Ala. - Mike Yastrzemski brought home Vince Conde with a bunt in the eighth inning to give Vanderbilt (31-25) a victory over South Carolina (39-16).
Conde opened the eighth with a double off Tyler Webb (5-1). He advanced to third on a groundout, then scored when Yastrzemski dropped a bunt down the first-base line.
Will Clinard picked up the save by pitching two scoreless innings. Kevin Ziomek (5-6) earned the victory.
The Commodores play Florida in today’s third round, while South Carolina will take on Auburn.
Sports, Pages 19 on 05/24/2012