NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Razorbacks are 2023 SEC champions.
Despite a 7-6 loss in the series finale against No. 12 Vanderbilt (37-17, 20-11 SEC), No. 2 Arkansas (39-15, 20-10 SEC) secured its fourth regular-season SEC championship on Saturday afternoon at Hawkins Field. The Razorbacks split the title with No. 4 Florida (42-13, 20-10 SEC) after both teams finished the season with an SEC-leading 20 wins.
Arkansas clinched its second SEC title in the last three seasons and its fourth in school history (1999, 2004, 2021 and 2023). The Razorbacks also won their eighth SEC West title, four of which have come since 2018. Dave Van Horn has led the program to seven division championships and its last three SEC titles since becoming head coach in 2003.
For the third day in a row, Arkansas scored first against Vanderbilt, breaking through for a pair of runs in the top of the second. The two-run advantage would not last long, however, as the Commodores benefitted from a go-ahead three-run home run in the bottom half of the frame off Razorback starter Hunter Hollan, who went 2 2/3 innings on Saturday.
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Vanderbilt extended its lead to 4-2 in the third, but Arkansas would put up a four-spot in the top of the fifth to regain its second two-run advantage of the ballgame. The Hogs put together a rally with RBI singles from Kendall Diggs, Brady Slavens and Peyton Holt as well as an RBI groundout from Caleb Cali, opening a 6-4 lead after five innings in Nashville.
In relief of Hollan, veteran right-hander Will McEntire provided stability with his 2 1/3 scoreless innings of work. The Bryant, Ark., native allowed just one hit and issued one free pass while striking out a pair of Commodore batters.
With McEntire out of the ballgame in the bottom of the sixth, Vanderbilt’s offense came back to life and scored three consecutive one-out runs. By the inning’s end, the Commodores had retaken a 7-6 lead.
The Razorbacks stranded a runner on base in the top of the seventh and left two more on in the top half of the eighth, failing to capitalize on several late-game scoring opportunities en route to their 7-6 loss in the series finale.
Offensively, Slavens led the charge with three hits and raised his season slash line to .303/.368/.546 in the process. Holt, meanwhile, went 2-for-4 with an RBI, collecting his fifth consecutive multi-hit game.
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Arkansas is the No. 2 seed in the SEC Tournament and will play its first game on Wednesday, May 24, at The Hoover Met. The Hogs play the winner of Tuesday’s single-elimination game between seventh-seeded Tennessee and 10th-seeded Texas A&M.
For complete coverage of Arkansas baseball, follow the Hogs on Twitter (@RazorbackBSB), Instagram (@RazorbackBSB) and Facebook (Arkansas Razorback Baseball).
Pictured here are six of the most expensive houses sold in Little Rock during the week of July 1-5.
“Sold” refers to the date on which the real estate deed was recorded by the Pulaski County circuit clerk, irrespective of the actual sale date.
$1.38 million. 67 Sologne Circle on Monday, April 18, 2022. Owned by Laxmi Thummalakunta and the Avyay Trust, a house behind this gate — at 208 Sologne Court — was sold to Jennifer and Jonathan Dotson. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Stephen Swofford)
$1.075 million. 23 La Scala Court. Owned by ParFour LLC, a house behind this gate was sold to Rebecca and James Jones and the Buddy and Rebecca Jones Living Trust. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Colin Murphey)
$1,052,280. 14 Deauville Circle. Owned by Kelly and Jon Carnahan and the Carnahan Living Trust, a house behind this gate — at 18 Deauville Circle — was sold to Jennifer and Jordan Greer. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Colin Murphey)
$1.05 million. 16 Cascades Drive. Owned by Sandra and Michael Sheppard, this house was sold to Jessica and Matthew Selig. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Colin Murphey)
$959,999. 3804 Gordon Road. Owned by Dakota Properties Inc., this house was sold to Michelle and Frank Cuervo. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Thomas Metthe)
Donna Turk Kuykendall, age 81, of Texarkana, Arkansas, went to be with her Lord and Savior on Friday, July 26, 2024, surrounded by her family. Mrs. Kuykendall was born on December 28, 1942, in Village, Arkansas, and lived in the Texarkana area most of her life. She was a retired
Though he stands at just 6-foot-2, don’t let that fool you – Johnuel “Boogie” Fland will play a major role in the success of this year’s brand-new iteration of the Arkansas Razorbacks.
After John Calipari’s departure and the mass exodus of players and commitments from Kentucky, the Archbishop Stepinac (NY) star followed suit, asking out of his National Letter of Intent from Big Blue Nation to follow the iconic college basketball figure across the Southeastern Conference to Fayetteville.
Joining an absolutely loaded team featuring high-level transfers like Johnell Davis (shooting guard, Florida Atlantic), Jonas Aidoo (forward, Tennessee), and Adou Thiero (forward, Kentucky), Fland will still play a major role on this Arkansas team as a talented combo guard that can straight-up shoot the basketball.
One of the best in the class at shooting off of the bounce, Fland is a really dynamic offensive player who handles the ball well with both hands and can slot into either guard position. Ideally, he will play more of a lead-initiator role in the context of being a prospect for the 2025 NBA Draft, but the scoring upside is so great that it may not really matter.
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At just 175 pounds, he is slight of frame in addition to the height issue, but plays with such an undeniable swagger and confidence, willing to let it fly from nearly any distance – contested or uncontested. Now, this does lead to problems with shot selection, as his shotmaking ability is so great that it can result in his taking (but often making) very difficult looks.
Equipped with an excellent handle and a wicked step-back jump shot, Fland has the game of a prototypical scoring guard at the college and the NBA level. His Synergy Sports statistics indicate that he is an elite scorer by efficiency as well, or at least was playing for Stepinac. He averaged 1.33 points per jump shot, putting him in the 92nd percentile in this category.
His points per shot above expectation was an astounding 0.38, meaning the shotmaking doesn’t just look good on tape – it translates to the advanced stats, too. What will be interesting to monitor will be his minutes, as this Arkansas team does have options at guard.
Other than Fland, the two other featured guards at this point are the aforementioned Nelly Davis, as well as Kentucky transfer DJ Wagner. It doesn’t really matter who starts, and matters much more who closes games; from watching tape, talking to sources, and looking at advanced stats, it seems clear that Fland will be one of the primary pieces on this roster.
He has shown he can create offense for others as well, despite his specialty being scoring. This will be the primary test for him at the collegiate level, as being an undersized scoring guard does not necessarily always translate to the NBA.
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However, if he can continue to develop as a true all-around offensive piece, one that can score and set others up, Boogie Fland could end up being a very high draft pick in a class that has been repeatedly crowned as one of the best in recent memory.
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$1.075 million. 23 La Scala Court. Owned by ParFour LLC, a house behind this gate was sold to Rebecca and James Jones and the Buddy and Rebecca Jones Living Trust. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Colin Murphey)
$1,052,280. 14 Deauville Circle. Owned by Kelly and Jon Carnahan and the Carnahan Living Trust, a house behind this gate — at 18 Deauville Circle — was sold to Jennifer and Jordan Greer. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Colin Murphey)
$1.05 million. 16 Cascades Drive. Owned by Sandra and Michael Sheppard, this house was sold to Jessica and Matthew Selig. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Colin Murphey)
$959,999. 3804 Gordon Road. Owned by Dakota Properties Inc., this house was sold to Michelle and Frank Cuervo. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Thomas Metthe)
