Razorbacks Falls 4-3 as UT-Arlington Grabs Surprising Road Win

Arkansas baseball rallied in the ninth inning, but UT Arlington held on for a 4-3 upset at Baum-Walker Stadium.

Arkansas Razorbacks pitcher Gabe Gaeckle after giving up a big hit against the UT-Arlington Mavericks. | Arkansas Communications

If Arkansas fans thought losing to Arkansas State was bad in midweek, turning around and dropping another game to start a series is downright head-scractching.

That's exactly what happened Friday afternoon, though. UT Arlington pulled off an upset, beating the Razorbacks 4-3 at Baum-Walker Stadium.

The No. 6 Hogs got behind early and could never catch up. A late push wasn’t enough to catch the Mavericks.

Arkansas (7-3) struggled to score until the ninth inning, but the problem was the hole they dug was too deep. The Razorbacks finally rallied, but got three runs then couldn't push across one to extend the game.

The Mavericks got two runs in the first inning. Preston Knott started things with a double to right field. Then Xavier Melendez’s single brought Knott home. Zach Mazoch followed with a fly ball that scored Melendez and made it 2-0.

UT Arlington added more runs later. In the fourth inning, Austin Phillips hit a two-run homer to left field. That made the score 4-0 and gave the Mavericks a bigger advantage.

Eight of nine Mavericks batters reached base at least once in the game. Phillips went perfect 2-for-2 at the plate. Mazoch notched multiple hits and had a double.

Arkansas starter Gabe Gaeckle had trouble with the Maverick offense early. UT Arlington righty Caylon Dygert shut down the Razorbacks for most of the day, going 8.2 innings. He gave up only two hits while striking out 11.

"Gaeckle made some mistakes and they made him pay," Hogs coach Dave Van Horn said later. "He hung some breaking balls, too. They were on it. Then he made some great pitches."

Late Arkansas Rally Comes Up Short

With two outs in the ninth inning, Arkansas began to push back. Ryder Helfrick drew a walk and reached second base. Camden Kozeal reached first on a fielding error, putting runners on the corners.

That made UT Arlington pull Dygert and bring in reliever Hayes Melville. Kuhio Aloy hit a double to right center that scored two runs. Then Reese Robinett doubled to left center to add another Arkansas run.

That made it 4-3, but the Hogs weren’t able to tie it. Maika Niu grounded out to third base, and the Mavericks closed the win.

Cole Gibler pitched solid relief for Arkansas, throwing three and two-thirds innings and giving up one hit with five strikeouts.

UT Arlington’s win snaps a long non-conference weekend streak for the Razorbacks. Arkansas had won 33 straight non-conference regular-season weekend series before this loss.

The teams will play Game 2 of the weekend series on Saturday at Baum-Walker. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. and the game will stream on SEC Network+.

Fans can also listen to the game on Razorback Sports Network on ESPN Arkansas 95.3 in the River Valley, 96.3 in Hot Springs and 104.3 in Harrison-Mountain Home. The game will also be available in broadcast markets online at HitThatLine.com