FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas pitcher Keaton McKinney fell one out shy of a shutout Sunday.
Instead, the freshman right-hander settled for his first career complete game in a 7-3 win over Kentucky at Baum Stadium. McKinney nearly became the first Razorbacks pitcher to record a complete game shutout since Brett Eibner in 2009.
Game Sketch
Line Score: Arkansas 7-13-0; Kentucky 3-5-2
Records: Arkansas 20-16, 7-8 SEC; Kentucky 19-15, 5-9 SEC
WP: Keaton McKinney (2-1)
LP: Kyle Cody (2-4)
Turning Point: The Razorbacks scored three runs with two outs in the fourth inning to extend their lead to 4-0.
Notable: Arkansas has won three consecutive SEC series.
Attendance: 3,489
Arkansas (20-16, 7-8 SEC) bounced back from a blowout loss to the Wildcats on Saturday. The Razorbacks have won three consecutive series.
McKinney didn't allow a hit until the fourth inning as Arkansas built an early lead. Andrew Benintendi's RBI single in the first inning gave the Razorbacks the lead, and Rick Nomura and Michael Bernal each had two-out RBI hits in the fourth inning to extend the lead to 4-0.
Tyler Spoon led off the eighth inning with a solo home run to give the Razorbacks a 5-0 lead. Nomura added an RBI single and scored on a fielding error to extend the lead to 7-0.
McKinney's shutout bid fell short after he allowed back-to-back singles to start the ninth inning. Connor Heady scored on a sacrifice fly and JaVon Shelby added a two-run home run with two outs.
Kentucky fell to 19-15 overall and 5-9 in SEC games.
McKinney is the first Arkansas pitcher to throw a complete game this season. His previous longest outing was five innings against Maryland and Southeast Missouri State.
The Razorbacks are scheduled to host Stephen F. Austin in a two-game midweek series beginning Tuesday. Arkansas returns to SEC play with a series at No. 2 Texas A&M next weekend.