FAYETTEVILLE — University of Arkansas starter Hunter Hollan overcame a rough first inning to help the No. 6 Razorbacks beat No. 12 Tennessee 5-2 on Friday night at Baum-Walker Stadium in the opener of a three-game SEC baseball series.
Hollan (6-1) went six innings, matching his season-long outing in nine starts, and threw a season-high 101 pitches after the Volunteers took a 2-0 lead in the first, including a leadoff home run by Jared Dickey and a run on a balk.
After Hollan threw 63 pitches in the first three innings, he stayed in the game by limiting himself to 38 pitches — including 27 strikes — in the fourth through the sixth.
“Hunter didn’t have his command, but man did he settle in,” Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said. “He just gave us a chance to catch up, settle down a little bit and take some good swings.”
Hollan, a junior left-hander whose previous high for pitches was 97 at Ole Miss last Saturday in the Razorbacks’ 11-2 victory, held the Vols to 2 runs, 1 earned, and 5 hits with 1 walk and 6 strikeouts.
“It’s just trying to get people out within the first three pitches,” Hollan said of pitching economically his last three innings. “You change your mindset [from], ‘I’m going to throw my best stuff,’ to where, ‘I’m going to throw it to where they can hit it.’
“Just weak contact, try to fool them.”
Sophomore left-hander Hagen Smith went the final three innings for the Razorbacks (27-7, 9-4 SEC) and allowed 1 hit with 7 strikeouts on 55 pitches.
“I thought they were awesome,” Arkansas outfielder Jace Bohrofen said of Hollan and Smith. “You’ve got these two guys to just dominate.
“We can win any game on a Friday night with those guys.”
Arkansas scored three runs in the third inning with the help of two Tennessee errors to take a 3-2 lead against starter Andrew Lindsey.
Parker Rowland started the rally with a leadoff single. Tennessee shortstop Maui Ahuna fielded a ground ball by John Bolton and made a throwing error when he tried to flip it to second baseman Christian Moore.
Rowland advanced to third base and Bolton was safe at first base.
When Bolton broke for second base on a steal attempt, catcher Cal Stark made a wild throw and Rowland scored from third base to tie it 2-2 and Bolton was credited with a steal.
Tavian Josenberger then worked the count to 3-2 and hit a 95-mph fastball from 384 feet over the fence in right-center field for a two-run home run.
It was Josenberger’s sixth home run this season and extended Arkansas’ streak to 30 games with a home run.
“He got him a fastball, and he didn’t miss it,” Van Horn said. “It was the biggest swing of the game. It got us the lead.”
Hollan retired the Vols (23-11, 5-8) in order in the fourth inning on nine pitches.
“When we scored those three runs, [Hollan] came out the next inning and got them out quick,” Van Horn said. “That’s really what you want your pitcher to do when there’s a little rally and you score some runs. Go out and get your team back in the dugout, and he did that.”
Tennessee Coach Tony Vitello said Hollan got into a better rhythm as the game went on.
“I thought our guys still had competitive at-bats,” Vitello said. “But when you have an open door against a guy like that, you had better charge through it, and we kind of went halfway through it.”
Bohrofen hit the first pitch he saw from reliever Seth Halvorsen for a home run over the right field wall to increase the Razorbacks’ lead to 5-2 in the fifth inning. The home run went 356 feet off a 96-mph fastball.
“I was just thinking, ‘This guy’s a fastball pitcher, he’s probably going to try to throw one here on the inner half,’ and I was sitting fastball,” Bohrofen said. “He threw it a little up, a little middle-in, and I just reacted to it and put a good swing on it.”
The Razorbacks made it 4-2 in the fourth inning when leadoff hitter Brady Slavens reached first base on a throwing error by Moore, advanced to second on a single by Caleb Cali, went to third on Ben McLaughlin’s walk and scored on a double-play ground ball by Rowland.
Hollan, a transfer from San Jacinto (Texas) Junior College, said he was fired up to pitch in front of the announced crowd of 10,562.
“I was like ‘Damn, here we go,’ ” Hollan said. “It was a blast.”
Hollan didn’t dwell on allowing a home run to start the game.
“I mean, that’s just what happens when you get behind good hitters,” Hollan said. “You have to throw pitches over the plate and he hit it. You know, it happens.
“You’ve just got to get strike one and you’ll have success.”
Van Horn said he hoped Hollan could go six innings and Smith would finish the game.
“If we have the lead and a chance to win the game, we’re going to go for it,” Van Horn said. “If we had a big lead, we might not use Hagen, but that game was never in hand.
“There’s too much offense and firepower over there. A hit by pitch and an error and home run and the game’s tied. So you’ve just got to go for it.”
Smith likely won’t pitch the rest of the series.
“I doubt it,” Van Horn said. “He came in and did an incredible job.
“At this time of the year, we don’t ask him to go twice on the weekend.”