HOOVER, Ala. -- Curtis Washington didn't bat against Ole Miss on Wednesday in the SEC Tournament, but the University of Arkansas freshman affected the game with his speed on the bases.
After Washington went in as a pinch runner in the bottom of the eighth inning for Matt Goodheart -- who hit a leadoff single -- he scored an insurance run in the Razorbacks' 5-3 victory.
"He's a great kid to be around, wonderful teammate," Arkansas second baseman Jack Kenley said. "He brings in a lot of energy every single day. Just kind of one of those guys you love to have on the ball club."
Washington, an outfielder from West Memphis, advanced to second on Dominic Fletcher's walk and then made it to third base on a wild pitch by Houston Roth with one out. The pitch in the dirt didn't get far from Ole Miss catcher Cooper Johnson, and Washington just beat the throw to third baseman Tyler Keenan.
"When he went from second to third, I was a little nervous," Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said. "But he did a great job. Great slide back-side of the bag. He barely beat it."
Kenley then hit a hard ground ball to first baseman Kevin Graham, who threw home as Washington slid around a tag attempt by Johnson.
"We were going on contact," Van Horn said. "If it had been hit back to the pitcher, [Washington's] gone.
"The first baseman hesitated just a split second on the throw to the bag, and he got under it. Sometimes you have to take a chance and make them make a play, and they didn't quite make it."
Gutsy Phillips
Ole Miss pitcher Zack Phillips, a junior left-hander from Texarkana, made his first start against an SEC opponent and worked 52/3 innings. He held the Razorbacks to two runs through five innings before giving up a two-out, two-run single to Jack Kenley in the sixth inning.
"Growing up in Arkansas, my whole family is big Arkansas fans," said Phillips, who attended the high school in Texas. "So it was pretty neat to get to pitch against them. I felt good it. It just wasn't our day."
Phillips (4-3) threw 45 of his 76 pitches for strikes.
"I thought he pitched his heart out," Ole Miss Coach Mike Bianco said. "He pitched with a lot of guts today against a really good offense. I thought he made some terrific pitches."
Bianco blamed himself for Kenley hitting a fastball for his single that put Arkansas ahead 4-3 on what was Phillips' final pitch.
"It's a shame that at the end we had a bad pitch call by me when Kenley got a good base hit up the middle," Bianco said. "I should have called a breaking ball."
Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn praised Phillips, who coming into the game had thrown just 32/3 innings in SEC play.
"He did a nice job, he really did," Van Horn said. "His fastball wasn't overpowering, but he did a good job with his changeup against us."
Waiting in line
Dave Van Horn missed Georgia shortstop Cam Shepherd's two-run home run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning that lifted the Bulldogs to a 2-0 victory over Texas A&M in Wednesday's opener.
Van Horn was standing in a concessions line to buy a drink when Shepherd's shot went over the left field fence and ended the game. The Razorbacks were waiting to play the next game.
"I was in line because it was the ninth inning and we had just got in here, and I thought, 'I'm going to go get me something to drink,' " Van Horn said. "So I've got my drink and I'm about to pay for it, and all of a sudden the crowd starts screaming and yelling.
"The [concessions] guy says, 'Somebody just hit a home run, the game winner.' And I said, 'I'm still going to buy this drink from you,' and I took it down and I had it in the dugout. I enjoyed it, too."
Van Horn declined to say what he bought to drink.
"I'm not going to advertise for anybody," Van Horn said with a smile.
A reporter expressed surprise that Van Horn -- or any SEC coach -- would need to go buy a drink and not have it provided by the conference.
Van Horn said it was no problem.
"I get per diem," he said. "I'm good."
Van Horn said he also was glad to be in line with the fans.
"I was hanging out with the people," he said. "I'm a people person."
Georgia up next
Arkansas didn't play Georgia during the regular season, but the No. 5 Razorbacks and No. 6 Bulldogs will play at 4:30 p.m. today. The winner will advance to the SEC Tournament semifinals and won't have to play on Friday.
"I haven't seen Georgia," Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said. "Just watched them a little bit here and there on TV. Their pitching numbers are incredible and they field the ball really well. Obviously they've got some great players."
Georgia went 21-9 in SEC regular-season games.
"That's pretty special," Van Horn said. "It'll be a good ballgame."
Campbell starting
Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said junior right-hander Isaiah Campbell (10-1, 2.50 ERA) will start against Georgia today and be on a pitch count, but he didn't want to be specific.
"I'll tell you tomorrow after the game," he said.
Georgia will counter with freshman right-hander Cole Wilcox (3-1, 4.17) as its starter.
Wicklander's day
Arkansas freshman left-hander Patrick Wicklander had a solid outing against Ole Miss after lasting just 12/3 innings in the Razorbacks' 6-1 loss at Texas A&M on Friday.
Wicklander allowed 2 hits, 2 runs and 1 walk with 4 strikeouts in 41/3 innings against the Rebels.
"His stuff was really good," Razorbacks Coach Dave Van Horn said. "His changeup was real good. His breaking ball was OK.
"Then towards the end he got behind in the count a little bit and made a couple mistakes. We weren't going to let him go more than five anyway, so he almost got us there."
Van Horn took Wicklander out of the game after Anthony Servideo stole third base.
"He stopped paying attention to a runner and let him steal third," Van Horn said. "If he just pays attention to him a little bit ... We knew [Servideo] was going to run. He was getting to go. [Wicklander] has got to feel that and see that.
"He might have finished that inning and got a 'W' next to his name. But after that [steal], we had to go get him."
Wicklander likely will start Arkansas' second NCAA regional game next weekend.
"He's a good pitcher," Van Horn said. "He's going to get the ball again in a week. So hopefully he'll continue to get better. He's pitched pretty good at home, too."
Good energy
Coach Dave Van Horn said he was pleased with how the Razorbacks responded in beating Ole Miss after they lost two of three games at Texas A&M last weekend.
The players had good energy, he said, during a 45-minute practice Wednesday before the game.
"Our whole pregame we let them wear shorts and T-shirts," Van Horn said. "I think they appreciated that. We were just trying to take care of them in the heat.
"We had energy, and we had fun out there. Took ground balls and hit and it was upbeat. I think they were excited to get on the field and play again."
All even
Arkansas is now 49-49 against Ole Miss and improved to 34-40 in SEC Tournament games, including 12-12 in openers.
Sports on 05/23/2019