Dave Van Horn talks Arkansas’s mindset for CWS elimination game against Murray State

Dave Van Horn has Arkansas in the College World Series for the 8th time in his 23 seasons in Fayetteville, and he wants this trip to have some staying power.

Things got off to a rocky start in Saturday’s CWS opener though, as the Razorbacks offense was completely shut down by LSU lefty Kade Anderson in a 4-1 loss that immediately sent the Hogs to the losers’ bracket. Arkansas will try to stay alive on Monday afternoon and keep its dreams alive for that elusive 1st national championship when it faces Murray State in a 2 p.m. ET start (ESPN) at Charles Schwab Field.

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Lefty Zach Root failed to give Arkansas much length in Saturday’s loss, lasting just 1.2 innings while giving up 3 huge early runs in the 2nd inning that the Razorbacks never recovered from. On Monday, with his team’s season on the line, Van Horn will turn to right-hander Gage Wood to try to hold down the Racers and keep the Hogs from an early departure back to Fayetteville.

Arkansas held its off-day practice on Sunday at Creighton Prep in Omaha, and Van Horn held court on a variety of subjects, including those pitching plans.

“We just got to try to win a game and take care of the inning that we’re in. For the most part, it’s about taking care of that inning and that game. We’ll try to do whatever we have to do to try to survive,” said Van Horn. “It’s all hands on deck for both teams.”

Here is the video of Van Horn’s comments:

By late Monday afternoon, the college baseball world will know whether Arkansas is heading home or heading to another challenge in that fight for that elusive trophy.

Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.