Heartbreak anatomy: How Arkansas baseball blew late lead in another crushing loss at CWS

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23-06-2025

OMAHA, Neb. — Heartbreak Hogs.
It's a moniker so unfortunate and so fitting that not even one of the best teams in Arkansas baseball history could ditch it.
There is a clear second place behind the foul ball against Oregon State in 2018 when ranking most-crushing defeats. The Razorbacks blew a two-run lead with two outs in the bottom of the ninth Wednesday, falling to LSU 6-5 in the semifinals of the College World Series.
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An Arkansas victory would not have sent the Hogs to the final. The Razorbacks still needed one more victory over the Tigers in the double-elimination bracket to secure a date with Coastal Carolina, but the nature of the collapse made the stakes seem amplified.
Here's a deeper look into the loss, with insight from coaches and players that participated in an unforgettable night at Charles Schwab Field.
The first chess move between Arkansas baseball and LSU coaches
The Razorbacks led 1-0 entering the bottom of the fifth. Landon Beidelschies provided five quality innings before a leadoff double and a hit by pitch chased the lefty from the contest. Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn summoned Gabe Gaeckle out of the bullpen.
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Gaeckle got two quick outs, with a sacrifice bunt moving the runners to second and third. Arkansas intentionally walked lefty Josh Pearson to give Gaeckle a righty-righty matchup against Chris Stanfield.
But LSU coach Jay Johnson went to lefty Jake Brown as a pinch hitter. Johnson thought Arkansas would make another pitching change and go to freshman Cole Gibler, a lefty.
"Gaeckle was getting pretty close to the point where if we had to play tomorrow, I thought, I don't know if they're going to be able to bring him back," Johnson said. "Getting Gibler in the game, I also thought would give us a little bit of an advantage if we had to play tomorrow."
Van Horn didn't go to the bullpen, and Brown slapped a single to left field to give LSU a 2-1 lead. All of a sudden, Arkansas was nine outs away from elimination.
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"We weren't going to take Gaeckle out at that time," Van Horn said. "No, we weren't thinking about going to him. That was just a clutch hit. You've got to give him credit."
Fresh relievers left in the bullpen
Gaeckle stayed on the mound for another two innings. In total, he threw 141 pitches in a four-day span after tossing six innings with 10 strikeouts against LSU on Saturday night.
Arkansas took the lead in the top of the eighth. A failed double play from LSU let the Hogs score two runs and go up 3-2. Gaeckle came out for the bottom of the eighth and recorded two quick outs.
But LSU finally took advantage of a hefty workload. First baseman Jared Jones hit a fastball the opposite way for a solo home run that tied the score at 3-3.
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"Messed up with two pitches and a good team takes advantage of that," Gaeckle said. "They got me on those two. Props to them, they're a good team."
Jones was 0 for 4 with four strikeouts against Gaeckle before the home run. It's no surprise Van Horn and pitching coach Matt Hobbs liked the matchup, but a fastball down the heart of the plate could be a sign of fatigue. The Hogs had plenty of fresh flame-throwing righties available, including Dylan Carter and Christian Foutch.
The back-to-back defensive miscues
Again, the Arkansas offense responded. Justin Thomas Jr. plated two runs with a single to left field in the top of the ninth and the Hogs carried a 5-3 lead into the final half inning.
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Gibler finally came out of the bullpen. He struck out John Pearson, allowed an infield single to Derek Curiel and walked Ethan Frey. The Tigers had runners on first and second with one out.
The next batter was Steven Milam, who hit a grounder to shortstop Wehiwa Aloy. Instead of trying to turn a double play, Aloy threw to third base to get the lead runner. The Hogs were one out away from the win, but they could have already been celebrating.
"I haven't talked to (Aloy) about it," Van Horn said. "I think he felt he moved too far to his right for Cam (Kozeal) to turn it. I don't know. (Milam's) an average runner. He's not a flyer, but he's not slow either. So I don't know."
That brought Luis Hernandez to the plate, and the LSU catcher smoked a 104 mph line drive to left field. It was right at Charles Davalan, but he slipped with one of his first steps and then made a failed diving attempt. The play was ruled a double and both runs scored to make it 5-5.
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After the game, the entire Arkansas team went out to left field to console an emotional Davalan. The Canadian left fielder said sorry to his teammates and coaches. They didn't appreciate the apology, but their reasoning was supportive.
"I said, 'Why are you sorry?' We wouldn't be where we are today without him, the way he competes, and he's one of the best hitters and people and just all-around best baseball players I've ever been around," Ryder Helfrick said. "For him to say sorry, it kind of pissed me off because the game's not on him. It's on the team. He's one of the greatest to do it here."
Van Horn agreed with his sophomore catcher.
"That kid doesn't have to be sorry for anything," Van Horn said. "He was our glue, man. He held it together."
Jun 18, 2025; Omaha, Neb, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks shortstop Wehiwa Aloy (9) reacts as LSU Tigers players celebrate the win at Charles Schwab Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-Imagn Images
No regrets on the final gut punch
After Davalan's miscue, Jones stepped to the plate, just one inning after his game-tying home run.
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First base was open and Josh Pearson was on deck with Gibler still on the mound. Arkansas could have intentionally walked the Tigers' slugger who leads the team with 22 home runs and 76 RBIs and give Gibler a lefty-lefty matchup.
Instead, the Hogs went to Aiden Jimenez and pitched to Jones.
"Right on right, I don't think so. We didn't feel like that it was something we needed to do. Hindsight is 20-20. We could talk about all the ifs and buts until we're sick of each other," Van Horn said.
The LSU first baseman delivered a walk-off single that hit second baseman Cam Kozeal's glove and squirted into center field.
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Hernandez sprinted around third.
The Tigers celebrated.
The Arkansas season ended.
Jimenez threw 41 pitches Tuesday. Again, Arkansas left fresh arms in the bullpen.
Add it all up, and the heartbreak Hogs made another appearance in Omaha, Nebraska.
The hunt for a first national title in program history lives until 2026.
Jackson Fuller covers Arkansas football, basketball and baseball for the Southwest Times Record, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at [e-mail] or follow him @jacksonfuller16 on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: How Arkansas baseball blew a late lead in crushing loss to LSU at CWS