Getting Defensive
STILLWATER, Okla. – It may be cliché, but the old adage that offense wins games while defense wins championships has been proven again.
Until Monday night, Oklahoma State held sway as the most intimidating team in baseball. Never before has a group of players dominated at the plate to such a degree that teams up by double-digits still felt like they were losing.
Through four games, the Cowboys had yet to be held to single digits. Even a goal of keeping Oklahoma State under 20 seemed a daunting task.
Saturday's 20-12 win by Arkansas felt like a miracle from God, and, following an emotional rollercoaster of a game Sunday night resulting in a series tying 14-10 loss, planning meetings around the All Hogs offices drifted to football coverage as a Razorback loss felt inevitable.
However, what seemed like an impossibility came to fruition as Arkansas pulled off a 7-3 stunner in Stillwater and it was 100% about defense – the up, up, down, down, left, right video game variety.
The determination to win led to Razorbacks making plays that not only defied physics, but required mental sharpness and preparation that straddled the fine line between genius and madness.
Words
As impressive as the play below by third baseman Caden Wallace to take potential OSU runs off the board is, a play that we don't have proved even more impressive. With runners at first and second, Wallace came up with a ball hit to a similar spot where he rifled a throw to second to gun down Neal McLean.
Not only did it require a powerful precision throw, but shortstop Jalen Battles had to know ahead of time the ball would be coming to him on a force, which is rarely the case in that situation.
The mental synchronization and perfect execution was the difference in the game as it made it possible for Arkansas to hold off a rally in the bottom of the 8th while clinging to a 5-3 lead.
No matter where the ball was hit, shots that led to runs the entirety of the regionals for Oklahoma State turned into outs.
While Zach Gregory filled the highlights with web gems that even included him sacrificing his face into the wall, his stumble on a difficult attempt at a line drive in Sunday night's game left him seeking redemption. When the chance finally came in the first, he wasn't about to pass up the opportunity.
With that kind of defensive backing, it came down to something no one had been able to do against Oklahoma State all weekend – pitch.
While it wasn't the last out, Hagen Smith's emphatic strikeout of Roc Riggio may have been the sweetest pitch in the eyes of Arkansas fans all season as "The Swag of Stillwater" was brought to his knees.
At that point, it was Smith who became inevitable.
HOGS FEED
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OKLAHOMA STATE PROVES IT'S BETTER FIT FOR SEC THAN LONGHORNS
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NOT EVEN VAN HORN FORESAW SATURDAY NIGHT RALLY
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