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Arkansas

Dave Van Horn feels very fortunate to make it through Fayetteville Regional undefeated

IMG_0985by: Griffin McVeigh06/02/25griffin_mcveigh
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(Hitt/Getty Images)

Not too much noise was made in the Fayetteville Regional. Three games for Arkansas, all of which ended in wins for the Razorbacks. Head coach Dave Van Horn has his team in a Super Regional once again but awaits their opponent with Tennessee and Wake Forest participating in a Game 7 on Monday.

Regional hosts across the country have been losing left and right, mainly from the SEC. Van Horn knows how fortunate they are to get through the NCAA Tournament’s opening round without a scratch. Wins by an average of 6.7 runs per game were easy as you like for Arkansas.

“I feel great about it,” Van Horn said. “I feel very fortunate. It’s not easy. We’ve sat here two years in a row where we didn’t get out of here. We went and won somebody else’s regional in ’22. In ’21, we won a regional, got beat in the last game on the next round to go to Omaha. I’ve been on all sides of it. You never take it for granted, at all.

“Like I told the guys when we left Hoover, ‘You have got to go earn it, nobody is going to give you anything.’ When you look at who’s winning around the country, you start thinking you’re all that, you’ll get it handed to you. These guys, they stay humble and got after it. We get to hang out together for at least another week.”

Putting runs on the board likely will take the headlines in Fayetteville. Those three wins were off the back of 26 runs produced, including 12 against Creighton in the 1-0 game on Saturday. One day later was something similar, getting eight across the board to take down the Bluejays and advance.

However, the pitching deserves some love as well. Opposing teams put up just five throughout the trio of games. A great sign for the Arkansas staff as they are bound to play a tough opponent in the Super Regional, no matter who goes through.

An extra off day never hurts either, especially in baseball. Arms can rest while batters get off their feet for another 24 hours before the all-important Super Regional.

Fayetteville will be hosting that Super Regional. Tennessee would be a familiar face if the Vols were to win, a team Arkansas has already taken two of three from this season. Wake Forest would head over from the NCAA, hoping for its second College World Series in three years.