FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. The 4th-ranked Arkansas baseball team is set for its 30th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history this weekend, as it will take on four-seed Oral Roberts in its first game of the Fayetteville Regional Friday at 2 p.m. on ESPN3.
Along with Summit League champion Oral Roberts, two-seed and C-USA champion Southern Miss as well as three-seed Dallas Baptist make up the regional field with the Razorbacks. This is the second-straight year that Arkansas and Oral Roberts are in the same regional and third time in the last four years. Arkansas hasnt faced Southern Miss since 1995 and Dallas Baptist since 2005.
Last year, Oral Roberts and Arkansas faced off twice in the 2017 Fayetteville Regional with the Razorbacks winning both the opening and elimination games, 3-0 and 4-3, respectively. The last three meetings between Arkansas and Oral Roberts have come in NCAA Regionals.
Super Regional Matchup
The winner of the Fayetteville Regional will advance to the Super Regional against the winner of the Greenville Regional that features No. 1 East Carolina, No. 2 South Carolina, No. 3 Ohio State and No. 4 UNC-Wilmington.
Fridays Probable Starter RHP Blaine Knight
Junior right-hander Blaine Knight will get the ball for Arkansas opening game of the 2018 NCAA Regional. Knight has been the Hogs Friday night starter all year and has racked up a 10-0 record with a 2.78 ERA. Last week, the Bryant, Arkansas native beat No. 1 Florida for the second time this year when he sent Arkansas to the SEC Tournament semifinals with a six-inning outing and only one run allowed. Hes currently the only pitcher in the NCAA with a perfect 10-0 record and has thrown less than six innings in his last five starts.
Player to Watch INF Casey Martin
Razorback third baseman Casey Martin comes into the NCAA Fayetteville Regional as one of the hottest players in the nation. The freshman smacked three homers in last weeks SEC Tournament, leading all players in the field and has now taken over the team lead with 13 home runs this year. H is 13 long balls are currently tied for the most by an Arkansas freshman in a single season, tying Zack Cox, who set the record in 2009. Martin has at least one hit in five of his last six games, including three multi-hit games. His .343 batting average currently leads the team and is seventh-highest in the SEC, highest among all freshmen.
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