Justin Wells, the JC transfer pitcher from Texarkana College and winner in relief of Arkansas ’ last SEC victory over LSU back on March 23 in Baton Rouge, La., broke the Razorbacks ’ four-game SEC losing streak beating Auburn, 5-4 Saturday afternoon before 7, 387 at Baum Stadium.

Wells (2-0 ) took a 5-3 lead into the eighth of his debut Razorback start. Yanked after an eighth-inning leadoff walk, Wells was saved by Stephen Richards’ relief in the eighth and ninth as Arkansas advanced to 17-12, 3-7 in the SEC West to even the series following Auburn’s 5-2 victory Friday night here.

Auburn (19-12, 5-6 ) and Arkansas conclude their SEC West series at 1 p. m. today.

Logan Forsythe, singling home the last of two seventh-inning runs that ultimately proved game-winning, and hustling to score from second in the sixth on Brett Eibner’s bloop single into right center, Jeff Nutt and Sean Jones sacrifice flies in the second and seventh and an Auburn throwing error in the second accounted for Arkansas’ five runs.

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Auburn had scored solitary runs off Wells in the third, fifth and seventh and mustered two 2-out eighth-inning singles, one for an RBI by Kevin Patterson. Then Richards struck out Brian Fletcher, stranding runners at second and third and set Auburn down 1-2-3 in the ninth including two strikeouts.

“ A heck of a job to Stephen Richards, ” Wells said. “ I would turn it over to him every time. ”

Good point. But for starters, it’s hard to dispute Wells winning while going sevenplus with five strikeouts versus six hits and just that lone walk, which did score in the eighth.

“ I thought Wells’ performance was tremendous, ” Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said. “ He took us into the eighth inning on a Saturday and gave us a chance to save our bullpen. ”

Pitching coach Dave Jorn recalled Wells’ spring surge contrasting to fall ball practices when his stock dropped with the autumn leaves.

“ He’s bounced back from a bad fall, ” Jorn said. “ He didn’t do anything in the fall. Didn’t throw strikes, didn’t get anybody out. He just put too much pressure on himself but he’s growing into himself. He pitched great. He’s pitched good every time we give him the ball. ”

Wells credits Jorn for how he’s now delivering the goods.

“ Me and Coach Jorn have been working on a delivery that fits me, ” Wells said. “ He has earned his paycheck working with me. I drop my arm angle to high threequarters. I was a lot more over the top which is a lot more natural for me. ”

If it takes dropping down to get over the top, the Hogs will take it gladly. They desperately needed success Saturday.

“ I thought it was just a solid game by our team, ” Van Horn said. “ I told them if we wouldn’t have played good D or pitched like we did we would have lost that ballgame because Auburn played extremely well too. It was a good win. They know we win today, it’s still there for us. ”

Moving runners along to beat Arkansas last Friday night, Auburn picked up Saturday where it left off. Fletcher doubled leading off the third, advanced when Ryan Jenkins grounded to the right side, and scored on Matt Hall’s sac fly.

However Auburn third baseman Joseph Sanders ’ in the third, one on Ryan Cisterna’s leadoff grounder and another upon fielding Jones’ sac bunt after Scott Lyons single put runners at first and second, netted one Arkansas run and set up Jones to score on Nutt’s sac fly for a 2-1 lead.

Sanders singled leading off the Auburn fifth and scored on Ryan Jenkins’ twoout single after a stolen base and wild throw by catcher Cisterna.

The wild throw was about all Cisterna did wrong. In addition to catching Wells and Richards, Cisterna, robbed of a fourth-inning home run by left fielder Fletcher’s leaping catch at the wall, hustled an apparent seventh-inning single into a leadoff double against losing starter Cory Luckie. Scott Lyons bunted him to third before Jones’ sac fly.

Ben Tschepikow’s 2-out single and advancing to second on a passed ball set up Forsythe’s RBI single off reliever Scott Shuman. Eibner’s groundout stranded runners at second and third after Nutt doubled.

Forsythe had walked and been bunted to second when he hustled home on Eibner’s bloop. Freshman Eibner got picked off, costing a run since Tim Smalling tripled immediately thereafter.

“ Eibner had a baserunning mistake but we stayed strong in the dugout and played hard, ” Van Horn said.