LEXINGTON ? Kentucky returns to action Friday at 6:30 p.m. when it hosts No. 11 Arkansas in the first game of a three-game series at Cliff Hagan Stadium.
The series continues Saturday at 4 p.m. in a game televised by FSN and wraps up with a 1 p.m. contest on Sunday. Friday?s game can be heard in Lexington on WRXA 1580-AM and the final two games of the series will be broadcast on WLXO 96.1-FM. All three games can be heard online at the official home for Kentucky sports, www.UKathletics.com.
The Wildcats are coming off a 3-1 victory over Marshall on Sunday in which four Wildcat pitchers combined to hold the Thundering herd to just six hits. Last weekend, Kentucky (21-19, 3-14 Southeastern Conference) lost its series at No. 29 Mississippi State after blowing a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the ninth of game three.
Arkansas (32-11, 8-10) enters the weekend with a 5-2 victory over Oral Roberts under its belt this week. A week ago, the Razorbacks stood in second in the SEC Western Division race before being swept by LSU at home.
Friday night, Kentucky sends junior right-hander Kalen Gibson (4-1, 5.44) to the mound against freshman lefty Nick Schmidt (5-1, 2.62). Gibson will be attempting to snap a six-game Friday night losing streak for the Wildcats when he goes to the hill.
Aaron Tennyson and Andrew Albers will toe the rubber for the Wildcats on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Arkansas is expected to throw Daryl Maday on Saturday and have yet to announce their Sunday starter.
The series features an interesting coaching match up between Kentucky?s John Cohen and Arkansas? Dave Van Horn. The two will be assistant coaches together this year on the USA Baseball National Team.
Both also have coaching roots at Northwestern (La.) State. Van Horn won two Southland Conference Championships there from 1995-97 before leaving. Cohen replaced him and won a pair of titles in four years. Each was named the SLC Coach of the Year twice.
Arkansas has won the last six meetings in the series, but four of the games have been decided by one run or less.
