FAYETTEVILLE -- The last team the University of Arkansas played before the covid-19 shutdown two years ago will be the first team the Razorbacks play in the NCAA Tournament next week.
The Razorbacks (38-18) were paired with Grand Canyon (41-19), the regular-season champion in the Western Athletic Conference, for the opening round of the NCAA Stillwater (Okla.) Regional.
The Antelopes went 25-5 during the WAC regular season but were eliminated in the conference tournament after back-to-back losses to Abilene Christian.
Arkansas right-hander Will McEntire picked up a 6-1 win over Grand Canyon on March 10, 2020, three days after the Razorbacks had snapped a five-game losing streak with a 15-2 win over South Alabama.
The following day, Kevin Kopps started and Peyton Pallette closed a 10-9 win over the Antelopes in which current Razorbacks Zack Morris, Mark Adamiak, Evan Taylor and Elijah Trest also pitched.
The game ended when catcher David Avitia, now a volunteer assistant coach with the Antelopes, grounded into a double play with the go-ahead runs on base.
"It was a good two-game series," Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn recalled. "We played really well, honestly, because we were scuffling along. I think we had lost four or five in a row when they came in and I'm thinking, 'Wow, this is no drop-off here,' and then we won a couple of games."
DVH doings
Dave Van Horn said he is still on a somewhat restricted diet since contracting what health officials diagnosed as a severe case of food poisoning.
Van Horn spent two nights in the hospital recovering from the incident, in which he narrowly avoided having to undergo surgery, and missed the Razorbacks' 4-3 loss to Alabama. Van Horn has missed three games during his 20-year Arkansas tenure: To attend the graduations of daughters Hollan and Mariel (at which he delivered the commencement speech), and the SEC Tournament game Wednesday in Hoover, Ala.
"I don't know about 100% because I'm not supposed to eat certain things," Van Horn said. "I'm supposed to eat things that are pretty bland and smooth, so to speak. It's been a strange situation. Still don't know what happened.
"I know that I was a few hours away from having surgery and getting another opinion. They really never know what happens. They don't know if you had a parasite, if it's food poisoning. But I was in some pretty good pain and was not getting any better, to the point where finally when you start throwing up, you're in a hotel room by yourself. You're going, 'I better start getting some help here.'"
Tygart's pen
Arkansas closer Brady Tygart has bounced back from his short stint in Friday's 7-5 loss to Florida, which ended after he allowed two runs in one third of an inning and was pulled after feeling nauseated on the mound.
"He's good," Dave Van Horn said. "He threw a bullpen yesterday, and he was really good with it."
Van Horn said pitching coach Matt Hobbs reported Tygart threw extremely well.
"So I think he's 100%," Van Horn said. "He told me later, I said, 'What happened?' And he just said, 'I think I might have gotten dehydrated.' I said, 'You've got to learn from that because we're playing in the heat. You can't just start drinking water in the morning. You've got to take care of that in advance.'
"It's something that we'll be discussing with our team again today and tomorrow and really keeping an eye on."
Lineup talk
Dave Van Horn moved center fielder Braydon Webb to the leadoff spot for Friday's 7-5 loss to Florida, which eliminated the Razorbacks from the SEC Tournament.
Webb drew a walk and hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning, but the Razorbacks dropped to 1-2 in games in which Webb has hit leadoff.
The Razorbacks have also used Cayden Wallace (29-13 record), Peyton Stovall (4-3), Zack Gregory (3-0) and Robert Moore (1-0) at leadoff this season.
"You can go look at on-base percentage and batting average and runs scored, and it'll drive you crazy," Van Horn said. "Gregory's got the best on-base percentage, but he's not hitting real well right now. But he's still getting on. It's hard to put him at the top or in the two hole.
"Webb's dangerous. He actually will take a walk, but he can hit a home run. Wallace has done a pretty good job there, but I don't know if he loves it there.
"So what I'm going to do is try to put together a lineup that maybe can get us on a run. Maybe one that can work for a while. So still tinkering, and hopefully something will work out."
O'Brate the great
Oklahoma State has one of the country's newest and most spectacular college baseball venues in $60 million O'Brate Stadium, which opened in 2021. It replaced Reynolds Stadium, which was the Cowboys' home for 40 seasons from 1981-2020.
O'Brate Stadium has 3,500 permanent seats but capacity can be expanded to 8,000. There are 11 suites and a 2,000-square-foot video scoreboard.
In February 2021, D1Baseball.com's Mike Rooney wrote of the stadium's look between first base and third base, "it is a double-decker setup that might remind you of Arkansas' Baum-Walker Stadium. The lower-level seats rise up to meet a spacious concourse. Above the concourse is an expansive set of suites and club-level seating. It is a big-league look and feel."
Arkansas has never played at O'Brate Stadium. The Razorbacks were frequent visitors to Reynolds Stadium, as recently as 2019 when Arkansas and Oklahoma State played in a fall exhibition game.
The Razorbacks are 10-14 all-time in Stillwater, including 7-10 against the Cowboys dating to 1971.
Arkansas played regionals at Reynolds Stadium in 1983, 1986, 1988 and 2015. The Razorbacks won the 2015 regional, which was their most recent regional played away from Fayetteville.
Dave and Andy
Dave Van Horn said he is buddies with Grand Canyon Coach Andy Stankiewicz, a seven-year major league player, who has been in the game since his playing career ended. The pair ran across each other at the Team USA baseball training facility in Cary, N.C., years ago and have matched up on the diamond before.
"Grand Canyon Coach Stankiewicz is a good friend of mine and a great coach," Van Horn said. "They are always good. A good defensive team, can pitch and this year they're swinging it.
"He's coached at Arizona State. He's well respected and they're just really well coached. It's going to be a battle."
When asked later about Stankiewicz, Van Horn added, "When I have talked with him and competed against him, I think we have a lot of the same ideas about baseball and the way you do things. I have a lot of respect for him."
Ticket talk
General public all-session tickets to the NCAA Stillwater Regional go on sale on Wednesday at 10 a.m.
Fans interested in buying tickets can access them at tickets.okstate.com/baseball or by calling or texting (877) 255-4678.
Hot Bears
Missouri State (30-27) enters the NCAA Tournament as one of the nation's hotter teams with a season-ending streak that included a 6-4 win at Arkansas on May 3.
Since ending a seven-game losing streak in late April, the Bears have won 16 of 25 games, including 5 of 6 last week at the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament on their home field in Springfield, Mo.
Missouri State won the MVC Tournament with a 13-3 victory over Southern Illinois on Sunday. The Bears outscored their opponents 59-26 during the conference tournament.
The Bears are the only team at the NCAA Stillwater (Okla.) Regional that has played multiple teams in the field. They lost 5-1 to Oklahoma State at O'Brate Stadium on March 8.
Missouri State is coached by Keith Guttin, who in 40 seasons has led the Bears to a 1,338-858 record and 11 NCAA Tournament appearances.