Arkansas blasts No. 1 Texas to take first game of series

FAYETTEVILLE — The No. 11 Arkansas Razorbacks started their weekend series against the No. 1 Texas Longhorns with a 9-0 win at Baum Walker Stadium on Thursday evening in front of 10,855 fans.

Junior lefty Zach Root took the mound to start the game for the Hogs and threw an absolute gem. The East Carolina transfer put in eight innings of work and allowed just two hits and no runs. He struck out a career-high 11 batters with just two walks.

The Longhorns trotted out junior right-hander Ruger Riojas, and the Hogs tagged him for nine runs in 3.2 innings. Five of those runs came from the long ball, as Carson Boles smacked a two-run shot to the Hog Pen in the second inning and Cam Kozeal hit a three-run bomb in the third.

As a team, the Hogs totaled eight hits and only struck out seven times. Two of those hits were the aforementioned home runs and another two were extra-base hits. The Longhorns, on the other hand, had just two hits and struck out 11 times.

Root took the mound to start the game and made quick work of the first two innings. In just 33 pitches, Root racked up four strikeouts and didn't allow a hit. Both balls that were put in play were groundouts to Wehiwa Aloy.

Arkansas got its first baserunner in the bottom of the second inning thanks to a Brent Iredale double to left field, and Carson Boles gave the Razorbacks their first runs of the game with a 364-foot home run to left field.

Root gave up his first hit of the game in the top of the third inning after Adrian Rodriguez hit a single and advanced to second, but the Longhorns couldn't get anything else. The Razorbacks tacked on another three runs in the bottom of the inning and did so with just one hit. Justin Thomas Jr. was hit by a pitch, Wehiwa Aloy walked, then Cam Kozeal hit a 411-foot three-run homer to stretch the Arkansas lead to 5-0.

Things got even more crooked in the fourth inning. Root, once again, didn't allow any Longhorns to score, and the Hogs scored four runs on four hits to chase Riojas and end his day. Thomas Jr. and both Aloy brothers drove in runs to push the Hogs' lead to 9-0.

At this point, the Longhorns would have loved to respond with some runs of their own, but Root wouldn't allow it. He struck out the side, with all three batters looking at the final strike. He followed that up with another shutout inning in the top of the sixth, but did give up his second hit of the game.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, Arkansas had the opportunity to stretch its lead to double digits and close in on a run-rule win, but squandered an opportunity with two runners on and no outs.

Root came back out for the seventh and, despite a four-pitch walk, didn't allow Texas to do anything. That set up a possible run-rule win for the Hogs, but they went three up, three down to head to the eighth. He came back out for the eighth and struck out two batters.

After the Hogs couldn't score again in the eighth, veteran righty Will McEntire took the mound to close the game out in the top of the ninth inning. He allowed a walk, but otherwise struck out the side to give the Hogs the win.

The Razorbacks will look to take the series on Friday night. First pitch it set for 7 p.m. CT and it will air on the SEC Network.