FAYETTEVILLE — There has been no shortage of marquee softball games at Bogle Park this year.
Arkansas (27-9, 8-4 SEC) opened its home schedule with a top-20 matchup against Arizona.
The Razorbacks have since hosted nine games against teams ranked in the latest USA Today/NFCA Coaches Top 25, which is the poll of record for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
That number is scheduled to increase Thursday night when eighth-ranked Arkansas welcomes 14th-ranked Georgia (29-7, 9-2) to Fayetteville for a mid-season SEC showdown. The three-game series is set to begin at 6 p.m.
More from WholeHogSports: How to watch Arkansas-Georgia game
The Bulldogs have torn through their league schedule and are within one-half game of first-place Tennessee in the league standings. Georgia has outscored its SEC opponents by a combined 62-32 score, and has the third-most home runs (61) in Division I.
In SEC-only games, coach Tony Baldwin’s team ranks first in the league in most offensive categories. The Bulldogs were on an 11-game win streak until a 4-0 loss to Kentucky on Monday.
“I'll take any suggestions,” Arkansas coach Courtney Deifel playfully said about slowing down Georgia’s bats. “I mean, they're at the top of the standings in a lot of areas in our conference, and rightfully so. They're a tremendous team with a ton of explosiveness and playing really well right now.
"And so, I think for us, it's just doing our thing and hopefully trying to contain it, because I don't think you could go in, realistically, and think you're going to completely control it.
"That's not the kind of offense that they have, and so it's just making sure that we're controlling what we can and trying to contain it — kind of taking care of it on our side.”
The Razorbacks have been one of the hottest teams in the league. Arkansas snapped a four-game skid in the middle of March and has since gone 7-1. During that stretch, Deifel’s team has won series against Alabama, Florida and Mississippi State.
Arkansas swept Mississippi State last weekend and extended its SEC road win streak to 10 series. The team’s stay in Starkville, Miss., was punctuated by a come-from-behind win in the final game, highlighted by Raigan Kramer’s go-ahead two-run home run in the seventh inning.
Entering the series, Deifel said she could count on one hand the amount of “bad at-bats” Kramer had and credited the sophomore for being a tough out. She was rewarded with the star moment Sunday.
“It was on a two-strike count, too,” Deifel said. “There's always a lot to be said for someone that hits a ball like that on a two-strike count. She's obviously incredibly confident in a two-strike count — she makes a pitcher work a lot. I honestly didn't realize it was her only hit of the weekend with the production that she had, and so for her to swing like that in a two-strike count in that situation and drive the ball out is just huge.”
VIDEO: Deifel previews Arkansas' series vs. Georgia
A familiar face will be back at Bogle Park. Former Arkansas standout Danielle (Gibson) Whorton is in her first season as a volunteer coach for the Bulldogs.
Gibson was part of the back-to-back SEC championship teams in 2021 and 2022, and was an All-American both seasons.
“They're just a tremendous team and a great staff, and I know she's added a lot of value to that,” Deifel said. “So, I'm excited to see her. I’m not excited to compete against her, and then I will be excited to see her again, you know, after the game. But it will be fun and I'm excited for our fans to welcome her back. She should get a really warm welcome back as she's earned that, absolutely.”