Dave Van Horn on Arkansas' loss to Kentucky on Sunday: 'We didn't get the big hit'

Sunday was a rough one for the Arkansas Razorbacks and head coach Dave Van Horn, dropping a second game to Kentucky to lose the series. Going on the road in the SEC is never an easy task but the Razorbacks had more than enough opportunities to get a win. A total of 11 players were left on base but they could just never pull through at the right moment.

“We had at least 11 left on,” Van Horn said on Sunday after the game. “Everything started with two outs. They got a couple of outs quick. And then he walked a couple. Our guys did a good job, make them throw strikes, got pitch count up in the first. Which was good to see. And then, we didn’t get the big hit.”

Van Horn is specifically discussing the first inning there. An opportunity was presented to take an early lead after two two-out walks. But a third strike out of the inning ended any kind of threat Arkansas put together.

Kentucky took advantage of a mistake starting pitcher Mason Molina made with the high fastball, though. A quick 2-0 lead eventually turned into 6-0 by the fourth inning and the Wildcats never turned back. They wound up winners by the score of 7-4.

Timely hits are important this time of year, especially with Arkansas having hopes of making a run to the College World Series in Omaha. Even if two outs are on the board, Van Horn wants to find a way to have a ball drop with runners in scoring position.

“We had a couple of chances to score runs,” Van Horn said. “We didn’t get the big hit. Most of the time, it was with two outs. Couple of times it wasn’t but we didn’t get it, bottom line. We didn’t get the hit.”

Arkansas does not have the easiest ending to their regular season from an SEC perspective. Mississippi State and Texas A&M are next up, with just the former being at home. Those two are the other teams in the SEC West with winning records and will be real tests for the Razorbacks heading into the postseason.

Taking advantage of opportunities will be important against those types of teams. Otherwise, they will punish you on the other side of the half inning and only add to the frustration Van Horn must feel watching his guys out there.