OMAHA, Neb. – Wehiwa Aloy powered Arkansas’ offense with a home run and a triple to drive in the team’s first three runs, while Zach Root rebounded from a shaky start to deliver five solid innings, leading the Razorbacks to a 7-3 win over UCLA and keeping their season alive at the Men’s College World Series on Tuesday night.
With the victory, Arkansas (50-14) advances to face SEC rival LSU on Wednesday night. The Razorbacks will need to defeat the Tigers twice in two days to reach the best-of-three MCWS finals. LSU took two of three from Arkansas during the regular season and beat them 4-1 in their MCWS opener on Saturday.
Despite Root’s strong performance, head coach Dave Van Horn was most encouraged by his team’s awakening offense, which had scored just 11 runs across its first three tournament games.
“I’m just glad we’re scoring more runs,” Van Horn said. “It definitely helped to be hitting in better conditions tonight. It wasn’t as humid, the wind was swirling a bit, but at least it wasn’t knocking everything down like the other day.”
OMAHA, Neb. – UCLA (48-18) capped off a remarkable turnaround season with a 7-3 loss to Arkansas in the Men’s College World Series on Tuesday, ending its Omaha run at 2-2 in its first appearance since winning the national title in 2013. The Bruins, who improved by 29 wins from a 19-33 finish in 2024, had a grueling day, playing Arkansas just six hours after completing a rain-delayed 9-5 loss to LSU.
“Disappointing day. Tough day. Tough circumstances,” said UCLA head coach John Savage. “But credit to LSU and certainly Arkansas. We can build on this. We’ve got a lot of young players who love and trust each other. This is a strong foundation.”
Arkansas’ offense was led by SEC Player of the Year Wehiwa Aloy, who launched his team-leading 21st home run in the first inning to give the Razorbacks an early 2-0 edge. His RBI triple in the fifth extended the lead to 3-0, and Arkansas tacked on four more runs late to secure the win.
Aloy has been one of the few consistent bats for the Razorbacks, going 5-for-11 (.455) with four RBIs and three extra-base hits through three MCWS games. However, Arkansas’ lineup has struggled beyond him, with the Nos. 4 through 7 hitters combining to go just 6-for-56 (.107) in the tournament.
“We just need to get some guys going if we’re going to get through what we need to get through,” Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn said.
Zach Root (9-6), who lasted only 1 1/3 innings in Saturday’s loss to LSU, delivered a bounce-back performance. The lefty allowed just three hits, walked two, and struck out five over five scoreless innings.
“He wasn’t happy when I pulled him last time,” Van Horn said. “But he showed today why he’s one of the best lefties in the country. If we can keep playing, maybe he’ll get another shot.”
Root said pitching coach Matt Hobbs reassured him after Saturday’s outing and told him he’d get another chance soon.
“I told him I was ready whenever,” Root said.
Aiden Jimenez followed Root and kept the Bruins in check with three hitless innings. The Razorbacks were poised for back-to-back shutouts after Gage Wood tossed the first MCWS no-hitter in 65 years Monday against Murray State.
But Arkansas faltered defensively in the ninth. UCLA’s Mulivai Levu tripled and scored on an error by third baseman Brent Ireland. A wild throw to first and a wild pitch by Will McEntire led to two more runs, cutting the deficit to 7-3.
UCLA’s best early chance came in the first inning, when the leadoff man reached and the Bruins loaded the bases. But Dean West was caught stealing home on a bold two-out attempt, and the call was upheld on review after catcher Ryder Helfrick tagged him just before his hand touched the plate.
UCLA threatened in multiple innings, getting its leadoff man aboard in three of the first five frames, but Root escaped trouble—including a fifth inning in which he worked around a single, walk, and two wild pitches.
Starting for UCLA was Cody Delvecchio (1-4), who had been academically ineligible until last week and hadn’t pitched since March 28. He held his own for four innings before being lifted with two on in the fifth. Ian May came in and turned a double play, but Aloy followed with a drive to center for a two-run triple to break the game open.
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