SEC perch tough spot to settle

Hogs 1 of 7 teams within game of 1st

Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn watches from the dugout against Alcorn State Wednesday, March 15, 2017, during the fourth inning at Baum Stadium.

FAYETTEVILLE -- It's crowded at the top of the SEC baseball standings.

The Arkansas Razorbacks are among seven teams within a game of the conference lead going into their three-game series at Tennessee, which opens at 6 tonight at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

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Thursday's Ticket

NO. 15 ARKANSAS AT TENNESSEE

WHEN 6 p.m. Central

WHERE Lindsey Nelson Stadium, Knoxville, Tenn.

RECORDS Arkansas 34-12, 13-8 SEC; Tennessee 23-18, 6-14

PITCHING MATCHUP Arkansas: RHP Blaine Knight (6-3, 3.48 ERA); Tennessee: RHP Hunter Martin (4-5, 3.07 ERA)

SERIES Arkansas leads 32-26

RADIO Razorback Sports Network. Not all games will be carried by affiliates. Check local listings.

TV SEC Network

SHORT HOPS The Razorbacks are 16-5 against the Volunteers since 2006, including 8-1 in Knoxville. ... Arkansas senior reliever Dominic Taccolini will miss his third consecutive SEC series because of soreness in his right forearm. ... Razorbacks right-hander Trevor Stephan (4-3, 3.54 ERA) will start Friday night against Vols right-hander Garrett Stallings (3-1, 2.83 ERA). ... Arkansas hasn’t announced a starter for Saturday’s series finale. Tennessee will start left-hander Zach Warren (2-4, 5.09 ERA).... The Razorbacks have won their past three series at Tennessee, sweeping 3 games in 2007 and 2012, and taking 2 of 3 in 2009.

Kentucky leads the East and is tied with West co-leaders Auburn and Mississippi State at 14-7.

The University of Arkansas, Fayetteville is 13-8 along with Florida, LSU and Texas A&M.

Arkansas' only outright SEC championship came in 1999 when the Razorbacks finished 22-8. They went 19-11 in 2004 to share the title with Georgia.

Being in the race is especially gratifying for the Razorbacks after they finished 7-23 in the SEC last season.

"I think it's great being in the middle of it," Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said. "Obviously, you'd like to be on top of it by a few games, but it gives us a chance.

"It gives you a lot of hope that you can go out and play well down the stretch and get enough wins to have a chance to win it. I think more than anything, I just want to play well. If we win, that's a plus."

The Razorbacks know where they stand in the SEC race with three series remaining.

"We show up to the park on game days here, and the standings are on the right side of the scoreboard," outfielder Luke Bonfield said. "You peek up there every once in a while.

"Then in the seventh or eighth inning every day, the scoreboard has what the standings are in the SEC or what are the scores of the games. So you know. You don't talk about it as a player, but you know."

The No. 15 Razorbacks (34-12) have lost their past two SEC series, going 1-2 at Auburn and 1-2 against Ole Miss.

"I want our guys to get a little confidence that if we get rolling this weekend, that we're healthy and mentally ready to go and feel good about where we are," Van Horn said. "We can only do what we can do. We can't worry about the rest of the league and the standings.

"We just have to try to win on Thursday and go from there."

Tennessee (23-18, 6-14) is sixth in the East, but the Vols took two of three games at Florida and have victories over Auburn, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt.

The Vols are led by third baseman Jordan Rodgers (.361, 7 home runs, 31 RBI) and second baseman Jeff Moberg (.337, 7, 27), and starting pitchers Garrett Stallings (3-1, 2.83 ERA) and Hunter Martin (4-5, 3.07 ERA).

"If you're thinking Tennessee is a pushover, they're not," Van Horn said. "They've lost a lot of close games.

"They're a desperate team right now because they need wins."

The Vols, trying to win enough games to be among the 12 teams in the SEC Tournament, have lost one-run games to Mississippi State, Florida, Auburn, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt.

"It's a good club," Bonfield said. "Every team in the SEC is tough.

"I think they're a little bit of an underrated team just because of how many teams are doing really well this year."

Arkansas shortstop Jax Biggers has a feel for the competitiveness of SEC play after seven series.

"Every game is going to basically be a war," Biggers said. "You can't take any pitch off, any out off."

Alabama is 2-19 in SEC play, but one of the Crimson Tide's victories came against Arkansas.

"That goes to show that any team can beat anybody," Biggers said. "We have to come out and play."

The Razorbacks, who play Vanderbilt at home and at Texas A&M to complete the regular-season schedule, can put themselves in position to be among 16 teams hosting an NCAA regional with a strong finish.

Seven SEC teams hosted regionals last season. The Razorbacks last had a regional at Baum Stadium in 2010.

"If we get to host a regional, that's just a major plus," Van Horn said. "It's good for the fans, good for us getting to stay home, but we don't dwell on that.

"Really, we try not to talk about those things to the players. They know it. We don't have to bring it up. We just talk about going to play Tennessee and finding a way to win this series and move on to the next series."

Van Horn knows there can be a lot of shuffling in the SEC standings over the next three weekends.

"Nobody's done anything yet," Van Horn said. "We still have a lot of work to do."