By Nate Allen
Special to the News-Times
FAYETTEVILLE - Arkansas baseball fans are going on four years to forget about the Bryant Bulldogs.
So here is a refresher regarding the Bulldogs (2-2) of the Northeastern Conference, who meet coach Dave Van Horn’s Razorbacks (3-0) in a three-game series at 3 p.m. today, 2 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday at Baum Stadium.
In 2013 at the NCAA Regional at Kansas State, the Bulldogs of coach Steve Owens knocked Arkansas into the loser’s bracket, stunning the Razorbacks 4-1 in the regional’s first game.
Arkansas avenged the defeat by beating Bryant 12-3 in the loser’s bracket final, but that first loss doomed Arkansas when host Kansas State beat them 4-3 in Sunday’s championship game.
While the Bulldogs haven’t been to Baum before, Owens has. His 2004 LeMoyne University squad battled Arkansas hard before losing 4-1 the first game of the regional that Arkansas eventually won before advancing to the College World Series.
Other than a mediocre 29-25 season in 2015, an aberration much like Van Horn’s only losing season and non-regional qualifying season last year in his 14 years with the Hogs, Owens has been massively successful since moving in 2011 from LeMoyne to Bryant.
Those 2013 Bulldogs went 45-18-1, and his 2014 and 2016 Bulldogs advanced to regionals while going 42-16 and 47-12.
On Friday against Arkansas starter Blaine Knight (1-0), the Razorbacks will see a starting pitcher apparently as good as any the Hogs will see in the SEC.
Junior right-hander James Karnichak, a second-team All-American last season after going 12-3 with 112 strikeouts against 43 walks in 94 2/3 innings last season, beat New Mexico State in Bryant’s season opener last week in Albuquerque, striking out 12 and allowing but two hits in five innings.
“Bryant is a really good team,” Van Horn said.
“They got a potential first or second round pitcher that we will see on Friday.”
Van Horn had more Karnichak info when meeting media Wednesday.
“He’s got a big arm,” Van Horn said.
“He might go 95 before it’s over with. He’s got a plus curveball and he competes really well. He seems to get out of jams. I noticed last week against New Mexico State, I think in the second inning they had runners at second and third and one out, and he got out of it. That’s what the good ones do.”
Growing up in the Northeast in Skillman, N.J., Arkansas junior left fielder Luke Bonfield said he’s not surprised by Bryant nor that the Bulldogs have a pitcher like Karnichak, who he describes as “a power pitcher” similar to former Razorbacks All-American Zach Jackson.
“I obviously have heard a lot about them being a Northeastern kid,” Bonfield said.
“I think they’ve averaged 45 wins. It’s a good program to face this early in the season to see where we are at.”
The Hogs were in a good place last weekend sweeping the Miami (Ohio) RedHawks, 7-0, 6-1 and 11-1 with the pitching staff only allowing a collective 14 hits and six walks in 27 innings while striking out 36.
Leadoff hitter Eric Cole (.455 with an inside the park home run), and catcher Grant Koch and Bonfield (four RBIs each), were among the hit men as Arkansas batted .298 as a team against the RedHawks.
With projected sophomore SEC weekend starter Isaiah Campbell still sidelined by a sore arm, Van Horn said last weekend’s rotation Knight, Trevor Stephan and Kevin Kopps rotation stays intact against Bryant.