FAYETTEVILLE -- A winter storm threat for later this week has cost Arkansas' baseball team a key home series as the Razorbacks cancelled their four-game set with California on Tuesday.
The series, set up when Arkansas agreed to play four games in the Cal Baseball Classic early last year, was scheduled to begin Thursday at Baum Stadium. But another round of winter weather is projected to hit the area Thursday, bringing near freezing temperatures and the possibility of precipitation.
The Razorbacks (4-2) scrambled to arrange a three-game series with Eastern Illinois, an Ohio Valley Conference member, which is scheduled to start Saturday. Losing the series with the Golden Bears will cost Arkansas some strength of schedule muscle.
California (5-3) will stay at home this weekend after arranging to host a three-game series with Kansas State. The Wildcats had scheduled to host Eastern Illinois, but that series was scrapped because of the projected weather.
Eastern Illinois (0-3), which lost three games at Arkansas by a combined score of 22-8 early last year, was scheduled to play three games last weekend at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway, but snow and frigid temperatures wiped out those games.
The Panthers were swept in their season-opening series at Georgia by a combined score of 39-6 on Feb. 13-15.
First pitch for Saturday's game will be determined today, according to UA officials. The Razorbacks and Panthers scheduled a 1:05 p.m. game Sunday and a 2:05 p.m. game Monday.
Arkansas will try to bounce back after going 1-2 in a round-robin series at South Alabama last weekend. The Razorbacks lost 9-5 to Central Florida and 13-6 to Maryland and defeated South Alabama 7-0.
The weekend's best starting pitcher was freshman right-hander Keaton McKinney, who allowed 1 run on 3 hits in 5 innings and left with a 6-1 lead Sunday in the loss to Maryland.
Sports on 02/25/2015