A stampede of Razorbacks took advantage of NIU pitching during Saturday’s doubleheader on the astroturf in Fayetteville, Ark., forcing the Huskies to drop two, and bring their winless streak to five.

In the first game of the twinbill, Arkansas (13-5) struck early by scoring six runs in just four innings on Huskie pitcher Jesse Richardson (0-2). The Razorbacks added one more in the sixth and four in the eighth to build an 11-0 lead. A short NIU rally in the ninth was just enough to make the game respectable, but not even close to denting the Razorbacks’ lead which ended in an 11-3 victory.

In the first game, Huskie pitchers struck out two batters, while walking a total of 10, with nine of those coming from Richardson, who threw for five and one-third innings. Along with the 10 gimmies, nine Arkansas hits, and four NIU errors, the Huskies could have only used a miracle to pull off a victory.

“Walks really hurt us,” NIU coach Joe “Spanky” McFarland admitted. Jesse (Richardson) had nine walks, and eventually those walks scored.

“We also had four errors in the game, and you can’t give a good team like Arkansas free bases and boot the ball, and expect to win.”

In the nightcap, the Huskies jumped out to a four-run lead after the first inning of play. Dreams of a Huskie victory were soon awakened by an onslaught of eight Razorback runs in the second. Huskie pitcher Jeff Schmitt quickly saw his record drop to 0-2 after allowing eight runs, five which were unearned, in one short inning.

The Huskies were able to put one more on the board in the third, but that was all that Arkansas pithers were going to allow, as they went on to beat the Huskies, 11-5.

“They didn’t beat us with the long ball,” McFarland explained. “They basically beat us by hitting the ball on the ground, and running. They executed their type of game perfectly.

“The only way we could beat them is to play good baseball,”

McFarland said. “We had some innings where we fielded well, and some innings where we pitched well, but not enough.

With a 2-7-1 standing, manager McFarland isn’t at all discouraged, considering five of their seven losses have come to Top 30 teams.

Because of the terrible weather the past two months, the Huskies have not been able to practice outside. This puts them at a greater disadvantage to schools in the south. The only way the Huskies will practice outside is by showing up to games early and practicing before the game.

“Playing teams like Arkansas will only help us in the long run,” McFarland said.

That is exactly what the Huskies will be looking for when they start conference play against Wright State, in a three-game series, April 3, in Dayton, OH.

After playing their first 18 games on the road, the Huskies will come back to the friendly confines of Ralph McKinzie Field for an eleven game, nine day homestand. NIU will kick off the homestand by facing St. Louis in a doubleheader on April 6.

Spanky McFarland and his Huskies don’t plan on getting exhausted after playing at home.

“We pitched a lot of pitchers in Georgia,” McFarland said, “and we’ve got some depth now.”

After two great recruiting classes, talent comes right along with depth. “Our last two classes are still young, but very talented,” McFarland explained. “We have to let them play and they’re going to take a few lumps.”

Next, the Huskies travel to Chicago for a doubleheader with Chicago State University on March 30.