OMAHA, Neb. — Arkansas pitcher Zach Jackson has one of the nation's strongest arms, but he said it wasn't operating at full strength Saturday.
Jackson said his pitch velocity was lower than normal in the Razorbacks' 5-3 loss to Virginia. He pitched 1 2/3 innings in relief, allowing two RBI hits.
"It happens every now and then," Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said. "It was a good day to get loose - humid, fairly warm in the 70s. Who's to say what it was?"
Jackson hadn't allowed an earned run in 8 2/3 postseason innings prior to the game against Virginia. He had struck out 16 of the 28 batters he faced prior to Saturday, but had only one strikeout against the Cavaliers.
"He had a chance to get a couple of guys and they did a good job laying off some pitches," Van Horn said. "He had to go through the middle of the order and their two, three and four-hole guys are pretty good."
Van Horn said Jackson's off-day had less to do with velocity and more to do with location of his pitches. Jackson missed a would-be strike three on a pair of borderline pitches before Kenny Towns' full-count RBI double gave Virginia the lead in the eighth inning.
"I would say they were maybe a (little) off the plate," Jackson said. "Sometimes you get that, sometimes you don’t, but it felt like he was pretty consistent all day, so it’s not something you can complain about."