NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. | The Grambling State University baseball team loaded the bases in the top of the first inning and came away with one run, but the Tigers could not overcome four walks and a three-run home run in the bottom of the frame as fifth-ranked Arkansas picked up a 17-3 victory on Tuesday night at Dickey-Stephens Park.
 
D'Quan Matthews started on the mound and could not survive the big first inning by Arkansas. He walked three and hit one batter as the Hogs exploded for six runs.
 
Grambling State (23-21) has now dropped two straight after reeling off a season-best eight-game winning streak. Arkansas (35-11) extended its win streak to four games and now has won 10 out of its 11 games.
 
How It Happened
Grambling State loaded the bases in the top of the first inning, but came away with one run to grab a 1-0 lead.
 
Isaiah Torres, Drexler Macaay and Richard Ortiz began the game with base hits to load the bases. After Rafael Ramirez, III struck out, Kevin Whitaker, Jr. plated Torres with a ground out to the shortstop.
 
Arkansas took advantage of three walks and a hit batter the bottom of the frame. Zach Plunkett belted a three-run homer to left off reliever Kaelin Woodard as the Hogs exploded for six runs to take a 6-1 advantage.
 
The Hogs added a run in the second inning to extend the lead to 7-1.
 
The Tigers got a run back in the top of the fourth.
 
Whitaker opened the inning with a base hit up the middle and moved to second on a Jahmoi Percival ground out. He advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a throwing error by the catcher, closing the gap to 7-2.
 
Arkansas picked up two more runs in the bottom of the frame to push the margin to 9-2.
 
The Tigers loaded the bases in the top half of the fifth inning and came away with one run.
 
Macaay begin the frame with a single to left center. Ortiz was hit by a pitch and both runners advanced on a wild pitch. Ramirez walked to load the bases. After a pitching change, Garrett Smith reached on a two-out infield single to plate Maccay to cut the margin to 9-3.
 
Arkansas scored two runs in the fifth, two in the sixth, one in the seventh and got a three-run homer by Heston Kjerstad to put the game away, 17-3.
 
Inside the Numbers
> Grambling State finished with three runs on six hits and left 13 on base
> Drexler Macaay led the Tiger offense with a pair of hits and one run scored
> D'Quan Matthews started on the rubber and lasted 0.1 of an inning. He walked three and hit a batter – all four runs scored – and struck out one
> Kaelin Woodard, Bryan Delgado, JC Bonilla, Jamary McKinney, Grant Landry, Ryan Evans and Whitaker worked in relief
> Arkansas finished with 17 runs on 16 hits, committed one error and stranded nine on base
> Trevor Ezell and Casey Martin each collected three hits and combined for six RBIs and eight runs scored to lead Razorback offense
> Kyle Ramage gave up three runs (two earned) on five hits, fanned seven and walked four in four innings pitched.
> Marshall Denton, Elijah Trest, Collin Taylor and Jacob Burton pitched in relief
 
News and Notes
> Grambling State and Arkansas met for the seventh time
> Arkansas improved to 7-0 in the all-time series, which began in 2010
> The attendance was announced at 10,463, which was the second-highest total for an Arkansas Razorback game at Dickey-Stephens Park (Record is 10,512)
> Grambling State played three SEC opponents this season – then-No. 7 Mississippi State, then-No. 9 LSU and No. 5 Arkansas
> Arkansas is ranked No. 5 in Baseball America, D1Baseball and Perfect Game, while being ranked No. 6 in USA Today/ESPN and Collegiate Baseball polls
> The Tigers continue to seek its first win over an SEC program during the James Cooper era
> Grambling State received a pair of baseball honors on Monday. Bryan Delgado was named the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Pitcher of the Week and Jahmoi Percival earned Louisiana Sports Writers Association (LSWA) Co-Hitter of the Week
> Arkansas played just its second SWAC opponent of the season, defeating Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 14-6, on April 16
 
Up Next
Grambling State concludes the regular season with a three-game non-conference series at Northwestern State. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Brown-Stroud Field in Natchitoches, La.
 
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