FAYETTEVILLE — Bogle Park will once again be the site of postseason softball.
Arkansas (36-16) was announced Sunday night as the No. 12 national seed and will host Arizona, Villanova and Southeast Missouri State at the double-elimination NCAA Fayetteville Regional.
It is the fourth consecutive season Arkansas has been selected as a regional host. There will be no shortage of familiarity for the Razorbacks against their opposition.
Arkansas will open with a game against the regional’s fourth-seeded team Southeast Missouri State (28-24) on Friday at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN+. SEMO was champion of the Ohio Valley Conference.
Advertisement
The Razorbacks defeated SEMO twice — 5-0 and 6-5 (8 innings) — in the Wooo Pig Classic earlier this season.
Arizona (34-16-1), the regional’s second-seeded team, hosted the Razorbacks at the Bear Down Fiesta in February. The Razorbacks and Wildcats split a pair of games, both by a 3-2 score.
Arizona will play Villanova (31-22), the Big East Tournament champions, in the regional opener at 5 p.m. on ESPN+.
The regional’s winner will be paired against the Stillwater Regional winner, which is hosted by No. 5 overall seed Oklahoma State and also includes Kentucky, Michigan and Northern Colorado.
Should Oklahoma State (44-10) win its regional, the Cowgirls would host the Fayetteville Regional winner.
Advertisement
It is the Razorbacks’ seventh consecutive NCAA Tournament berth under ninth-year coach Courtney Deifel, which exceeds the program’s six total appearance prior to her tenure.
Arkansas had not hosted a regional prior to Deifel taking over in 2015, but has hosted five since 2018.
The SEC led all conferences with 8 host teams, and all 13 teams in the conference made the 64 team-field. Vanderbilt does not sponsor softball.
Arkansas was joined by No. 3 national seed Tennessee, No. 4 Florida, No. 7 Missouri, No. 9 LSU, No. 11 Georgia, No. 14 Alabama and No. 16 Texas A&M as regional hosts from the SEC.
Texas and Oklahoma, which will join the SEC next year, are the Nos. 1 and 2 national seeds.
Advertisement
Other national seeds are Oklahoma State, UCLA (6), Stanford (8), Duke (10), Louisiana-Lafayette (13) and Florida State (15).
Kentucky had a need at wide receiver entering the only transfer portal window of the offseason. The Wildcats addressed the position again on Day 10. UK has added a second transfer to the room. This is a familiar name to those who follow recruiting.
Arkansas transfer Ja’Kayden Ferguson committed to the Wildcats after his visit to Lexington over the weekend. The wide receiver was a former UK commit who flipped to the Hogs during the 2025 recruiting cycle. Now Ferguson has flipped back to the Big Blue.
Ja’Kayden Ferguson was a three-star recruit out of Metro Houston who picked Kentucky following a June official visit ahead of the 2024 season. However, Ferguson decided to open up his recruitment five months later and flipped to Arkansas. The 6-foot-2 receiver appeared in six games for the Razorbacks as a true freshman and burned his redshirt. Ferguson played just 20 offensive snaps.
The SEC transfer becomes the eighth current full-time scholarship player in Kentucky’s current wide receivers room. Some more additions are expected.
KNOXVILLE, TN – January 16, 2025 – “We Back Pat” on jersey during the game between the Mississippi State Bulldogs and the Tennessee Lady Volunteers at Food City Center in Knoxville, TN. Photo By Kate Luffman/Tennessee Athletics
Lady Vols basketball is back in Knoxville for a matchup with Arkansas after a two-game road stand. Tennessee is not only looking to stay perfect in SEC play, but is hosting its annual ‘We Back Pat’ game.
Here’s everything to know about the matchup, from broadcast details to a prediction.
More From RTI: Everything Lady Vols HC Kim Caldwell, PG Mia Pauldo Said After Road Win At Mississippi State
How to Watch — No. 20 Lady Vols (11-3, 3-0 SEC) vs. Arkansas (11-7, 0-3 SEC)
Start Time: 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT
Location: Food City Center (Knoxville, Tenn.)
Watch: SECN+ | PxP: Andy Brock, Analyst: Kamera Harris
Online Streaming: Watch ESPN
Radio (Knoxville): The Vol Network/The Vol Network App
Vol Network radio crew: PxP: Brian Rice, Studio Host: Jay Lifford
Betting Odds
None listed yet
ESPN Matchup Predictor
Lady Vols – 98.3%
Advertisement
Arkansas – 1.7%
What Kim Caldwell Said After Mississippi State
“Good to get a win on the road. We know it’s a tough environment and we know that we got to win on the road in the SEC. It was good to do that. I wasn’t really proud of the rebounding, but I thought we looked a lot better in a couple different categories so that was good.”
Last Five Games
Lady Vols:
Advertisement
at Mississippi State, 90-90 W
at Auburn, 73-56 W
vs. Florida, 76-65 W
vs. Southern Indiana, 89-44 W
vs. Louisville (Brooklyn), 89-65 L
Arkansas:
vs. South Carolina, 93-58 L
at Alabama, 77-48 L
vs. Vanderbilt, 88-71 L
vs. Arkansas State, 81-72 L
vs. Stephen F. Austin, 82-73 W
Where They Land In Rankings
Lady Vols:
AP Poll – No. 20
Coaches Poll – No. 22
Bart Torvik – No. 13
Advertisement
Arkansas:
AP Poll – Unranked
Coaches Poll – Unranked
Bart Torvik – No. 107
Advertisement
Stat Leaders
Lady Vols:
Points: Talaysia Cooper – 14.9
Rebounds: Zee Spearman – 7.3
Assists: Talaysia Cooper – 4.3
Arkansas:
Points: Taleyah Jones – 16.9
Rebounds: Bonnie Deas – 9.7
Assists: Bonnie Deas – 2.6
Prediction
It’s been a rough start for Arkansas’ new coach, Kelsi Musick. The team is 0-3 in SEC games, and though it’s been against three good teams, the Razorbacks haven’t been competitive in any.
While neither side has been strong, Arkansas’ defense has been the weakest point. Not only is it coming off a game in which it gave up 93 points to South Carolina, but Arkansas State hung 81 in its win over the Razorbacks on the road.
Advertisement
If the Lady Vols don’t get in their own way, then they should be fine. It hasn’t been perfect, and against three teams not necessarily in the mix to win the league, but Tennessee has looked much improved in the SEC slate compared to the lumps it took in the out-of-conference schedule.
I’d think UT jumps on Arkansas in the first quarter and takes a comfortable lead into the second quarter. From there, the lead should continue to grow behind forced turnovers in the press and easy baskets on the other end.
