:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63372143/usa_today_10912113.0.jpg)
Arkansas went 2-2 this week and turned around from a horrible 17-7 loss at home to Little Rock to take 2 of 3 on the road at Auburn. If losing by 10 to the Trojans was what it took to win a top 15 conference matchup away from Baum-Walker, I think we can live with it. After losing game one, the Diamond Hogs outlasted the Tigers in a marathon, 15 inning second game of a double header on Friday, and then shut them out to clinch the series on Saturday. Arkansas will face Oral Roberts on Tuesday before packing up again and heading to Nashville to take on Vanderbilt this weekend.
Hitter of the Week
Trevor Ezell had a great week at the plate, registering 4 hits in the 3 game series at Auburn, and another 3 hits in the mid-week catastrophe against Little Rock. He hit a home run in each of the final two games of the weekend series and drove in 7 runs in those contests. Ezell recently swapped places in the order with Casey Martin, and he is continuing his success at the plate from the leadoff spot.
Pitcher of the Week
After using 8 pitchers in a 24 inning double header the night before, Arkansas really needed a solid start on Saturday if they had a chance to win the series. Making his first SEC start of his career, Patrick Wicklander turned in that performance. He pitched an impressive 5 shutout innings, giving up only 2 hits and 3 walks while striking out 6 to earn his third win of the season. Wicklander also started the mid-week game and did not allow an earned run through 3.1 innings, striking out 5. Although Wicklander has struggled in relief spots this season, he has enjoyed much more success as a starter, and Dave Van Horn may just keep him in that role in Nashville this weekend.
Most Important Stat
Razorback batters struck out 33 times to 13 walks over 24 innings in the first two games of the Auburn series and still only lost one of those games. As Auburn had to dig deeper into their bullpen, the Hogs showed patience to work more counts and only struck out 3 times to 9 walks on their way to an 8-0 win in the finale.