WATCH: Arkansas pitcher Connor Noland flashes agility, toughness with incredible play
Arkansas pitcher Connor Noland had an impressive outing for the Razorbacks in the Stillwater Regional opener versus Grand Canyon on Friday. The Arkansas native allowed just one earned run through seven innings as the Hogs swung a 7-1 lead.
To close out his appearance, Noland showed his agility and toughness as he was hit by two line drives within 12 pitches in the seventh. The pitching coach and trainer checked him out after both hits but he stayed in the game and struck out the final hitter with two runners on base.
Though the GCU hits were hard, Connor Noland knows a little something about taking a hit. He’s a former four-star quarterback who played and started for the Hogs in his freshman year under Chad Morris before ultimately narrowing his sports down to baseball.
The starting pitcher called it a day with six hits, one run, three walks and four strikeouts after seven innings.
If the Razorbacks’ lead over Grand Canyon holds, they’ll take on the winner of Oklahoma State versus Missouri State on Saturday night.
As a quarterback for the Razorbacks, Noland played in four games in 2018, starting once on homecoming against Tulsa. He completed 21 passes on 42 attempts, throwing one touchdown while totaling 255 yards for a 50% completion rating. The Hogs played four different quarterbacks that season before Noland moved on to become a starting pitcher for Dave Van Horn’s team.
Coming out of Greenwood High School, Noland was the No. 331 recruit in the nation, according to the On3 Consensus.
The Arkansas baseball team this season limped to the finish line, going 0-2 in the SEC tournament. However, they proved on Saturday they still have the bats, and the pitchers, to make it to the College World Series.