FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – A balanced effort up and down the lineup led No. 12/17 Tennessee to a 10-7 victory over No. 5/8 Arkansas in Thursday night’s series opener in front of a capacity crowd at Baum-Walker Stadium.
It was an offensive game all around as both teams finished with 15 hits on the night, but the Volunteers were able to get some big outs throughout the game to strand runners in scoring position in key moments.
The Razorbacks (41-12, 18-10 SEC) left 12 runners on base, thanks in large part to some clutch performances out of the bullpen from Dyan Loy, AJ Russell and Tanner Franklin.
Six different Vols finished with two or more hits, led by a 3-for-4 night from Dean Curley, who homered and scored a pair of runs, as well.
Dalton Bargo delivered a pair of big swings for the Big Orange, hitting two home runs to finish with a game-high three RBIs. The Omaha, Nebraska, native, led off the second inning with a solo shot to open the scoring and added a two-run blast in a three-run seventh inning for UT.
Tennessee (41-13, 16-12 SEC) posted three separate three-run innings to account for nine of its 10 runs, including an impressive response in the top of the ninth after allowing Arkansas to cut its deficit to one with three runs of its own in the bottom of the eighth. Following a leadoff single by Reese Chapman, Cannon Pebbles launched a two-run homer into the Hog Pen in left field to put UT up 9-6. A few batters later, pinch runner Jay Abernathy raced around from first on a single by Gavin Kilen before scoring on a throwing error by Razorbacks’ right fielder Logan Maxwell to account for Tennessee’s 10th and final tally of the night.
The Vols were able to tag Hogs’ starter Zach Root for four runs on seven hits and chase him from the game after just 3.2 innings while UT starter Marcus Phillips battled to give the Big Orange 4.1 solid innings on short rest before handing the ball off to the bullpen with the lead.
Russell Picks Up First Win of 2025
After Loy got a big strikeout for the second out of the fifth inning, Russell came on and struck out Ryder Helfrick to end the frame and strand the tying run on second base.
The junior righthander finished with three strikeouts and allowed two hits in two scoreless innings to pick up his first win of the year.
Winners in Fayetteville
Tennessee snapped a seven-game losing streak in Fayetteville with Thursday’s win. It was also the first victory for head coach Tony Vitello on the road against the Razorbacks, where he was an assistant coach for four seasons before accepting the head coaching position at UT. Prior to Thursday’s win, the Vols’ last victory in Fayetteville was a 5-4 triumph on May 8, 2015.
Up Next
The Big Orange will look to secure their first series win at Arkansas since 2001 when the two teams square off in game two of the series on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. ET. Junior ace Liam Doyle will get the start for Tennessee.
