Arkansas

Three takeaways as Arkansas baseball loses home weekend series to Texas A&M

Published

11 months ago

April 19, 2025

Three takeaways as Arkansas baseball loses home weekend series to Texas A&M

FAYETTEVILLE — A historic start to the Arkansas baseball season is now facing its first meaningful adversity.

The No. 2 Razorbacks (34-7, 13-5 SEC) dropped two of three games this weekend to Texas A&M as the Aggies (23-16, 8-10) handed Arkansas a second straight series loss. It’s also the first time since 2022 the Hogs have lost a weekend series at home.

Arkansas now sits three losses behind No. 1 Texas in the SEC standings, and there’s no respite in future weeks with upcoming series against the Longhorns, LSU and defending national champion Tennessee.

Here are three observations from the Hogs’ series loss to Texas A&M.

Not enough production from bottom of Arkansas baseball’s lineup

Justin Thomas Jr. had a nice series from the 9-hole with two home runs and four hits, but he was the lone Hog near the end of the order to play well against the Aggies.

The 5-8 hitters in the Arkansas lineup combined to go 6-for-44 across the three games. Players like Cam Kozeal and Ryder Helfrick cooled off, and the Razorbacks got nothing from their right side of the infield. They miss Nolan Souza, who is likely out for the season with a shoulder injury.

“It’s just been a little bit of here-and-there. We just need to get a few more guys rolling and we can put up some bigger innings,” Van Horn said.

The two bright spots for the offense were Wehiwa Aloy and Charles Davalan. Aloy was a dominant force at the plate this weekend, going 7-for-14 with two homers, five runs and four RBIs. He hit a 448-foot bomb to left field in game two that had an exit velocity of 113 mph.

Aloy now has 16 home runs on the season, which lead the Razorbacks and are two more than he hit all of last year. Davalan was 6-for-14 with four runs, and he got unlucky with multiple hard-hit balls going right at Texas A&M defenders.

Bullpen hits first speed pump

Arkansas and Texas A&M were tied 1-1 entering the fifth inning of a decisive rubber match Saturday night. With starting pitcher Landon Beidelschies on five days rest and a pitch count, Van Horn pulled the lefty and went to his bullpen ace, Aiden Jimenez.

A supposed advantage for Arkansas ended up swinging the series toward the Aggies. Jimenez allowed a two-run homer to Jace LaViolette, his fourth of the series, and the Arkansas relievers yielded eight runs across the final five innings. Freshmen Cole Gibler and Carson Wiggins struggled after a brief weather delay.

On the other side, Texas A&M won the series because of the efforts of two relievers. Weston Moss and Luke Jackson didn’t give up a run in 8⅔ scoreless innings during games one and three.

“They pitched better than us,” Van Horn said. “That’s why they won two out of three.”

Is Gabe Gaeckle back?

Gabe Gaeckle lost his spot in the starting rotation this weekend to Gage Wood, but Wood only recorded one out and allowed three earned runs in his return from a shoulder injury during game two.

Gaeckle came out of the bullpen later in the game and seemingly rediscovered his electric form from last season when he was the Hogs’ closer. Gaeckle pitched the final 5⅔ innings of a series-evening 11-5 victory. He struck out eight batters and gave up one run in his arguably his best performance of the season.

Arkansas needed that type of outing after its first two starters — Wood and Zach Root — combined to allow nine runs. Root only lasted four innings Thursday night.

Up Next

Arkansas hosts Little Rock for a two-game series in midweek action beginning Monday before hitting the road next weekend to face Florida.

Jackson Fuller covers Arkansas football, basketball and baseball for the Southwest Times Record, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at jfuller@gannett.com or follow him @jacksonfuller16 on X, formerly known as Twitter.

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Arkansas

Arkansas Bested by Mizzou on Sunday

Published

6 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

It was a tight battle all the way through, but ultimately No. 7 Missouri took down No. 8 Arkansas in Sunday’s SEC dual, 197.425-197.225.

There was plenty for the Gymbacks to be proud of in the meet, starting with the all-around performance of freshman Allison Cucci. She earned a new career high of 39.500, good for the all-around crown and the highest of any freshman in the nation this season. Cucci also tied for first on vault (9.900) and got second on beam (9.925).

Redshirt junior had a fantastic outing as a floor specialist and scored a 9.900 on vault and 9.925 on floor. Both marks were good for a share of first place on the events. Senior Morgan Price earned a big 9.925 at bars anchor, which tied for first on the event.

The last two events of the day kept Arkansas in contention with Mizzou, as the Gymbacks went 49.425 on both floor and beam, the latter a season high.

Bars

After a 9.675 from Joscelyn Roberson in the lead-off spot, Hailey Klein got the Gymbacks on pace again with a 9.875. Avery King made her collegiate debut next and delivered a great 9.825 routine in a last-minute situation. Her fellow freshmen Avalon Campbell and Allison Cucci went next and scored a 9.750 and 9.800, respectively. Morgan Price anchored with the energy Arkansas needed and capped her routine with a stick to score 9.925. Arkansas finished the bars rotation with a 49.175.

Vault

Cami Weaver and Leah Smith opened the vault rotation with Yurchenko fulls, scoring 9.800 and 9.750. Cucci and Klein were the team’s first 1.5s of the day, and the two scored 9.875 and 9.800, respectively. Lauren Williams went 9.875 in the fifth position and Morgan Price earned a 9.850. The Gymbacks scored 49.200 total on vault.

Floor

Arkansas started out floor with a 9.825 from Hailey Klein and a 9.850 from Cami Weaver. Cucci then broke into the 9.900 range with a new career high 9.900 midway through the rotation. Smith went 9.850 in the fourth position, keeping Arkansas on pace. Williams and Roberson closed the rotation strong with scores of 9.925 and 9.900, which pushed the Gymbacks’ floor total to 49.425.

Beam

Madison Gustitus began the beam rotation with a 9.775, and Priscilla Park went 9.875 next for the Gymbacks. Klein concluded her all-around day with a 9.850 on beam midway through the final rotation. Cucci came up next and got a huge 9.925, a new personal best for her. Weaver followed with a 9.875, which brought Roberson up to anchor. She did her usual and scored a 9.900, and Arkansas closed the meet with a 49.425 event score on beam, a new season high.

Up Next

Arkansas returns to Bud Walton Arena for its home finale against No. 1 Oklahoma on Friday, March 6. The meet has been deemed a White Out, and the team is pushing fans to help break the NCAA gymnastics attendance record, which is currently just over 16,000. It will also be Senior Night, honoring a fantastic class of Razorbacks. Action is set for 7:15 p.m. and tickets are available online, by phone, or in person. The meet will be streamed live on SEC Network+.

More Information

Visit ArkansasRazorbacks.com for the latest information on all things Arkansas Gymnastics. You can also find the Razorbacks on social media by liking us on Facebook (Arkansas Razorback Gymnastics) and following us on Twitter and Instagram (@RazorbackGym).

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Arkansas

OPINION | WALLY HALL: Arkansas will need more than Robinson’s coerced contribution | Arkansas Democrat Gazette

Published

18 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Wally Hall

whall@adgnewsroom.com

Wally Hall is assistant managing sports editor for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. A graduate of the University of Arkansas-Little Rock after an honorable discharge from the U.S. Air Force, he is a member and past president of the Football Writers Association of America, member of the U.S. Basketball Writers Association, past president and current executive committee and board member of the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, and voter for the Heisman Trophy. He has been awarded Arkansas Sportswriter of the Year 10 times and has been inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame and Arkansas Sportswriters and Sportscasters Hall of Fame.

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Who is Taylen Green? Arkansas QB dazzles with record-setting NFL combine performance

Published

1 day ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Who is Taylen Green? Arkansas QB dazzles with record-setting NFL combine performance

Move over, Anthony Richardson. There’s a new quarterback athletic marvel at the NFL scouting combine.

On Saturday in Indianapolis, Arkansas’ Taylen Green broke Richardson’s top marks at the position since 2003 for both the vertical leap and broad jump. Green’s 43½-inch vertical topped Richardson’s previous high by three inches, while his 11-2 broad jump beat the Indianapolis Colts signal-caller’s measurement by five inches.

Then, Green reeled off a 4.36-second 40-yard dash time. That stood as the second-best time for any quarterback since 2003, trailing only Reggie McNeal in 2006 (4.35 seconds). Richardson, for comparison, logged a 4.43-second mark in 2023.

Green didn’t even bother with a second attempt after his initial time.

The testing profile created quite the stir around the 6-6, 227-pound passer, who had widely projected as a developmental option for teams on Day 3.

NFL Network’s Charles Davis said Green told him that no teams had approached him about working out as a receiver, adding that he would not be interested in a position switch.

Green started for the Razorbacks for the last two seasons after playing the first three years of his career at Boise State. Known for his running ability and ample arm strength, Green threw for 2,714 yards and 19 touchdowns last year while adding 777 yards and eight scores on the ground.

It was a banner day for Arkansas, as running back Mike Washington Jr. also stood out among his peers with a group-leading 4.33-second 40-yard dash as well as strong marks in the vertical leap (39 inches) and broad jump (10-8).

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