FAYETTEVILLE — Kendall Diggs drove a ball over center fielder Blake Stenger’s head for a walk-off RBI double in the bottom of the 11th inning to propel the No. 8 Arkansas Razorbacks to a 10-9 win over Illinois State on Wednesday.
The win over the scrappy Redbirds (4-4) was a relief for the University of Arkansas (6-2), but it might have come at a cost before an announced crowd of 8,727 at Baum-Walker Stadium.
Arkansas closer Brady Tygart came out of the game in the ninth inning with an apparent arm injury after calling out the trainers and having his right arm examined.
Illinois State had scored two runs against Tygart in the eighth and ninth innings, paving the way for sophomore Dylan Carter (1-0), who worked a scoreless final 21/3 innings to notch the win.
Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn did not have a health update on Tygart, saying, “I don’t have any idea what’s up.”
The action was furious in a back-and-forth battle between the Razorbacks’ three-run first inning and Diggs’ heroics in the 11th, which came with no outs against Elijah Dale (1-1) following Peyton Stovall’s leadoff double. Stovall, Diggs and Caleb Cali hit consecutive home runs in the seventh inning to give Arkansas a three-run cushion.
A handful of historians of Arkansas baseball could not recall three consecutive home runs by the Razorbacks, and it is believed to be the first occurrence of that feat since former coach Norm DeBriyn took over in 1970.
“I mean it was a wild game, obviously,” Van Horn said. “It’s good to see it and good for the guys to feel it a little bit and be a part of that and know they can do that.”
Arkansas won its third in a row against the Redbirds after falling 3-2 to them in last year’s season-opener, the Hogs’ first season-opening loss since 1994.
“We had trouble with them last year to open up the opening weekend here,” Stovall said on the Razorback Sports Network. “They beat us opening day and so we knew that they were going to come in and they were going to play us well.
“Just wearing ‘Razorback’ across your chest, you’re going to get everybody’s best. They came out and credit to them, they were swinging the bat good.”
Illinois State rallied from deficits of 3-1 and 8-5 by staying on the attack with 13 hits, including three home runs and five extra-base hits.
“We got down early and our guys did a great job of battling back,” Illinois State Coach Steve Holm said. “It’s just one of those deals that when we’re on the road against the No. 3 team in the country, you probably need something to go your way. Late in the game, we needed one hit and we didn’t get it.”
Arkansas hit four home runs, including Jared Wegner’s two-run shot off freshman Thomas Harper in the first inning, his third.
Arkansas entered the eighth inning with an 8-5 lead courtesy of the back-to-back-to-back shots by Stovall, Diggs and Cali against Illinois State relief ace Erik Kubiatowicz. Diggs hit his third of the season, Stovall his first and Cali got his first hit as a Razorback.
However, Tygart allowed a two-run home run to Stenger in the top of the eighth inning as Illinois State drew within 8-7.
Arkansas extended the lead to 9-7 in the bottom of the inning after Tavian Josenberger singled, stole second and scored on Wegner’s one-out single.
But the Redbirds weren’t through. Greg Nichols hit an opposite-field home run to the left-field corner to open the inning. With out out, JT Sokolove drew a walk. Daniel Pacella, whose solo homer had given Illinois State a 5-3 lead in the fifth, followed with a bouncer to shortstop John Bolton. His throw to Stovall for a force at second base went down the right-field line, allowing Sokolove to score just ahead of Brady Slavens’ throw to the plate.
Tygart struck out one batter and had a 1-1 count on Dylan Swarmer when he began shaking his arm and asking for the athletic trainers.
Carter got all the time he needed to warm up and said his fastball, slider and change-up were all working.
“I felt really comfortable with those pitches,” Carter said. “You know, I didn’t get to throw a pitch out on the mound before because obviously Brady went out and we hate that for him, but the game plan was just go out and execute, make my pitches.”
Before the game-winning hit, the Redbirds had their outfield well up to try to cut down Stovall at the plate on a single and Diggs noted the positioning.
“I did see it, but I wouldn’t say it was part of my approach,” Diggs said. ‘But obviously, just trying to put a good swing on it and it carried a little bit. Shoutout to Dylan. We couldn’t have been in that situation without him and he pitched his butt off, so it was good.”
Arkansas batted around in the first inning against Harper, with Wegner’s 433-foot shot to left center field scoring Jace Bohrofen, who had walked.
“It was a fastball. I think it was middle-in, was able to turn on it,” Wegner said. “Pretty much got all of it.”
Arkansas senior Zack Morris got his first start of the season and struggled again in his fourth appearance, allowing 2 runs on 5 hits and a walk while recording 3 outs through three batters in the second inning.