Razorback Report: Arkansas handily takes down another SEC foe

Your daily briefing on what's going on with Arkansas Razorbacks' athletics

Arkansas players celebrate a 3-1 win against Alabama on Thursday night at Razorback Field in Fayetteville, Ark. | Arkansas Communications

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — No. 11 Arkansas (8-3-3, 6-1-1 SEC) picked up another key conference win Thursday night, defeating Alabama (10-5-1, 4-4-0 SEC) 3-1 at Razorback Field.

Bella Field put the Razorbacks on the board early, converting a penalty kick in the 15th minute after an Alabama handball in the box.

The Crimson Tide found an equalizer in the 33rd minute when Maddie Padelski finished a pass from Gianna Paul to make it 1-1 at halftime.

Arkansas took control in the second half. Vailana Tu’ua scored the go-ahead goal in the 63rd minute, sliding a shot into the back corner from inside the box.

The Razorbacks sealed the victory in the 87th minute when Sabrina Jones sent a ball over the top to Kennedy Ball, who finished the play for the final 3-1 margin.

Alabama held a narrow 17-15 edge in total shots and led 4-1 in corner kicks, but Arkansas made the most of its chances to earn its sixth SEC win of the season.

Yesterday’s Results

• Soccer: No. 11 Arkansas 3, Alabama 1
• Women’s Tennis: Arkansas at ITA Central Regional

Today’s Schedule

• Volleyball: Arkansas at Texas, 6:30 p.m., SECN+
• Cross Country: Arkansas men and women at Missouri Pre-National invitational
• Women’s Tennis: Arkansas at ITA Central Regional

Did You Notice?

Thursday Student-Athlete Availability Report

Texas A&M

Out

RB Le’Veon Moss
S Bryce Anderson

Arkansas

Out

DB Quentavius Scandrett
WR Monte Harrison
WR Ismael Cisse
WR Jalen Brown
RB AJ Green
TE Jeremiah Beck Jr.
TE Andreas Paaske
DL Danny Saili

• Arkansas baseball’s most recent transfer portal class was ranked No. 11 overall by D1Baseball. Here’s what the website said about the Razorbacks’ class:

"Here’s yet another group of transfers built around impact position players — are you sensing a trend here? Damian Ruiz (our No. 15 ranked position player transfer) is one of the few players in the portal who accrued more than 4.0 WAR last year (4.2). After two lackluster seasons at Houston Christian, Ruiz had a huge breakout junior year at Lamar last year, and his superb plate discipline (50 BB-27K) suggests he should be able to transition well to the SEC. Maika Niu (our No. 6 position player transfer) followed up his 15-homer spring at Marshall by winning Cape Cod League MVP honors, leading the premier wood-bat circuit with eight homers. His power is a difference maker, but he can also run and is making a nice transition from shortstop to center field. Zack Stewart is an accomplished slugger with 44 career homers over three years at Missouri State, though he also comes with lots of swing-and-miss. TJ Pompey is a 6-foot-4 third baseman who has flashed the ability to hit for average at Texas Tech, and he’s an interesting pick to click as a junior for the Hogs.

"What makes this class even more intriguing is a handful of power arms with immense potential they are still learning to harness. One season after Aidan Jimenez transferred from Oregon State to Arkansas and pitched well enough to be drafted in the fifth round, right-hander James DeCremer is following that same path. DeCremer ran his fastball up to 94 mph and showed a wipeout changeup on the Cape this summer, and he looks like a very strong bet to be a key bullpen piece for the Hogs. Ethan McElvain and Jackson Kircher both run their heaters into the high 90s, and if they can take steps forward with their command, they have star potential as well."

— D1 Baseball on Razorbacks' signing class