Arkansas bats too much for Southeast, falling late in NCAA road opener

Southeast Missouri State infielder Brooks Kettering throws to first base during the OVC Tournament championship game against Morehead State on Saturday, May 25, in Marion, Ill.

Tony Capobianco ~ tcapobianco@semoball.com

Going down across the state’s southern border and into Fayetteville, Arkansas, Southeast Missouri had a chance to do the unthinkable, and it nearly did just that.

After falling into an eight-run hole early on Friday, the Redhawks rallied all the way back to tie No. 5 Arkansas there before eventually succumbing, 17-9, in the opening game of their 2024 NCAA Tournament run.

Going into one of the top atmospheres in all of college baseball, Southeast Missouri rattled off eight consecutive runs at Baum Walker Field but just couldn’t keep that pace after forcing Arkansas’ hand.

Against some of the best pitchers in the nation, with Arkansas ranked as the top team in the nation by earned runs allowed per game, you couldn’t tell as SEMO cut up the Razorbacks.

Arkansas came back up in the bottom of the fifth tied at eight-all, and with the help of solo homers from Wehiwa Aloy and Kendall Diggs, rallied the troops, got momentum back and sealed the opening win.

After a miserable start from the Redhawks defensively, including a seven-run second inning as starter Haden Dow lasted just 1.2 innings, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that they dropped this one.

It’s hard to win a game in which you surrender 17 runs, but the SEMO bats showed a whole lot of resiliency on Friday afternoon, and that bodes excellently heading into Saturday action.

Trailing by eight runs early, Ben Palmer rallied the troops with a three-run homer in the third inning, and two frames later, Josh Cameron punctuated that with a three-run shot of his own.

A game decided largely by the long ball, a lot of the momentum of the game swayed with whether or not the ball was leaving the yard.

Arkansas’ opening rally started with a homer, SEMO’s rally back started with a homer, and the final rally from the Razorbacks started with the aforementioned pair of jacks in the fifth.

Now sitting at the 0-1 mark, facing the possibility of falling out of the playoffs in just two games for the third time in four years, SEMO’s back is against the wall once more.

The Redhawks will next play at 2 p.m. on Saturday against the loser of the Kansas State and Louisiana Tech game, the first elimination game of the Fayetteville Regional.

Coach Andy Sawyers and his Redhawks have been in this spot before, the third time specifically for this talented, 16-deep senior class that’s elevated the program back into the national spotlight.

After pushing nine runs across against one of the best defensive teams in America in its own ballpark, the Redhawks’ confidence is undoubtedly high heading into Saturday.

Pending a decision from Sawyers, with Sam Heyman perhaps most likely with Brian Strange and Payton Lawrence both valid secondary options, the tale of the tape will surely be vastly different.

With tomorrow not guaranteed, it’s do-or-die time for the Redhawks against some of the nation’s top competition.