LEXINGTON, Ky. — Hunter Dietz delivered another strong performance Thursday night, but it wasn’t enough.
Arkansas dropped the first game of a three-game series to the Kentucky Wildcats 4-3 at Kentucky Proud Park, falling to 34-19 on the year and 15-13 in the SEC.
The Hogs’ ace gave the team everything they could’ve asked for on the mound. The problem was that the offense didn’t hold up its end of the deal.
Dietz Makes History on the Mound
Dietz took the ball and worked six full innings, giving up four runs — three of them earned while striking out nine Kentucky batters.
It was his ninth quality start of the season, the most on the team and it was good enough to add another impressive line to an already strong year. Unfortunately for the Razorbacks it went into the loss column.
The lefty’s nine strikeouts on Thursday pushed his season total to 117, which is the most of any pitcher in the SEC.
More than that, Dietz moved into the top 10 in Arkansas program history for strikeouts in a single season. He passed former Razorback left-hander Drew Smyly, who had set the mark at 114 back in 2010.
It’s a notable achievement for Dietz, who’s been one of the most reliable arms on the staff all year. But the focus after the final out was on what the team couldn’t get done with runners on base.
This was also the first time Arkansas had lost with Dietz on the mound since a March 28 matchup against Florida and the first time the Hogs had dropped a series opener since they fell at Auburn on April 2.
Kentucky Strikes First and Adds Insurance
The Wildcats got on the board right away.
In the bottom of the first inning, Kentucky connected on a two-run home run with two outs and two strikes, which set the tone early for the night. It’s the kind of hit that can take the air out of a road team in a hurry.
Arkansas answered in the third inning when a two-out wild pitch allowed infielder TJ Pompey to score from third base, pulling the Razorbacks back within one run.
The momentum didn’t last.
In the fourth inning Kentucky pushed across two more runs, first on a double-play grounder that scored a runner and then on a two-out error by the Arkansas defense that handed the Wildcats a 4-1 lead.
That margin proved to be the difference.
Kentucky starter Nate Harris was effective through the first three innings, not allowing a hit. After Harris came out, the Wildcats’ bullpen combined to throw six more innings and give up just two runs total.
For the game, the Razorbacks finished just 2-for-15 with runners on base and 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position. That kind of production at the plate makes it hard to win regardless of how well the pitching performs.
Arkansas managed just four hits all night.
Late Comeback Falls Short
The Hogs showed some fight late in the game.
Outfielder Ryder Helfrick came through with a two-out RBI single in the seventh inning to cut the deficit to two.
In the ninth, infielder Zack Stewart launched a leadoff solo homer — his ninth of the season — to bring Arkansas to within a run at 4-3.
But Kentucky didn’t let it go any further.
The Wildcats turned to Jaxon Jelkin, who’d been announced as the starting pitcher for game three of the series, to come in and close things out.
Jelkin recorded a two-inning save and ended any chance of a Razorback comeback.
In relief of Dietz, James DeCremer threw two-thirds of an inning and struck out two batters, while Parker Coil followed with one and one-third innings and added one more strikeout.
Together they were solid, combining for two scoreless relief innings with three punchouts — but the deficit was already in place before they took the mound.
What’s Next for the Hogs
The Razorbacks aren’t going home after one game and they’ll have a chance to even things up Friday night.
Arkansas is set to start right-hander Gabe Gaeckle, who holds a 5-3 record and a 4.47 earned run average this season.
Kentucky will counter with left-hander Ben Cleaver, who comes in at 2-3 with a 3.57 ERA.
First pitch for game two is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on SEC Network+, with Dick Gabriel handling play-by-play duties and Doug Flynn serving as the analyst on the call.
The Wildcats came into Thursday’s game sitting at 31-18 overall and 14-15 in the SEC.
Despite the loss, it’s still a winnable series for the Hogs. A win Friday would put Arkansas right back in the driver’s seat heading into Sunday’s deciding game.
