Hogs Open SEC Tournament against Gamecocks

HOOVER, Ala. – SEC Western Division champion No. 5 Arkansas (43-12, 20-10 SEC) will open postseason play in the SEC Tournament against South Carolina (34-21, 13-17 SEC) Wednesday, May 22, at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium.

First pitch between the No. 2 seed Razorbacks and No. 10 seed Gamecocks is set for approximately 1 p.m. following the conclusion of the game between Kentucky and LSU, which is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday’s game will be broadcast on SEC Network with Dave Neal (play-by-play) and Chris Burke (analyst) on the call from The Hoover Met.

The winner of the Arkansas-South Carolina game will play the winner of the Kentucky-LSU game in a double-elimination game at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, May 23. The losers will play at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in a win-or-go-home game.

Schedule
Wednesday, May 22
South Carolina vs. Arkansas – 1 p.m. – SEC Network – Listen – Live Stats

On the Mound
Wednesday, May 22
South Carolina – RHP Eli Jones (3-4, 5.49 ERA)
Arkansas – RHP Ben Bybee (2-1, 6.00 ERA)

Sophomore right-hander Ben Bybee will make his seventh start of the season in Wednesday’s SEC Tournament opener. In his most recent start, the Overland Park, Kan., who is 2-1 with a 6.00 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 24.0 innings over nine appearances this year, spun four shutout innings with a career-high-tying six strikeouts against Missouri State (May 1).

Tune In
Dave Neal (play-by-play) and Chris Burke (analyst) will have the call of Wednesday’s game between Arkansas and South Carolina from The Hoover Met. The Hogs’ SEC Tournament opener can also be heard on the Razorback Sports Network from Learfield, including locally in Fayetteville on 92.1 FM or through the Razorback app, with Phil Elson (play-by-play) and Razorback great and former big leaguer Bubba Carpenter (analyst) on the call.

A full list of radio affiliates is available here.

History Lesson
Arkansas maintains a 48-37 overall series record against South Carolina, including a 32-23 mark against the Gamecocks in the Dave Van Horn era. Since 2013, Arkansas is 19-9 overall against South Carolina, including a pair of wins this year.

Wednesday’s match-up between the Hogs and Gamecocks marks the ninth meeting between the two teams in the SEC Tournament and the first since 2018. Arkansas is 4-4 all-time against South Carolina in the conference tournament.

Hogs in Hoover
The Razorbacks, who won the SEC Tournament for the first time in program history in 2021, are 28-30 in Hoover under head coach Dave Van Horn. Arkansas has reached the semifinals in three of the last six tournaments (2017, 2018, 2021) and played for the title twice in that span (2017, 2021).

Arkansas is the No. 2 seed for the second straight year and fifth time in tournament history. This is the seventh straight year that the Razorbacks are a top-4 seed.

Arkansas has won at least one game in eight of its last nine tournaments and posted multiple victories seven times in the span. The pitching staff has recorded 10 or more strikeouts in eight of its last 14 tournament games, and four of the Razorbacks’ last five tournament games have been decided by one run.

Machine of Consistency
Since the start of the 2017 season, Arkansas is the winningest college baseball program in the entire country.

Arkansas – 332
Oregon State – 319
Southern Miss – 316
East Carolina – 314
Florida – 313
LSU – 312
Vanderbilt – 309
Tennessee – 308
Texas Tech – 302
Dallas Baptist – 301

It Just Means More Wins
The SEC Western Division champion Razorbacks clinched their fifth divisional crown in the last six seasons. Arkansas has won the SEC West title nine times, including eight times – 2004, 2007, 2011, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024 – under DVH.

Arkansas concluded the regular season with 20 SEC wins, its fifth 20-win SEC season in school history. The Hogs have finished with 20 SEC victories five times – 1999 (22), 2019 (20), 2021 (22), 2023 (20), 2024 (20) – since joining the league.

For complete coverage of Arkansas baseball, follow the Hogs on Twitter (@RazorbackBSB), Instagram (@RazorbackBSB) and Facebook (Arkansas Razorback Baseball).