SPORTS
By Robby Edwards | Photos courtesy of Razorback Communications
Van Horn, Hogs Seeking Fifth College World Series Trip in Nine Years
University of Arkansas baseball reached the College World Series last year and advanced to the semifinals, but for the Razorbacks to return to Omaha for the fifth time in nine years, head coach Dave Van Horn must rebuild his weekend pitching rotation and replace at least six starters in the field.
Led by shortstop Wehiwa Aloy (.350 average, 81 runs scored, 21 home runs, 68 runs batted in), winner of the 2025 Golden Spikes Award as the top amateur baseball player in the country, the Razorbacks went 50-15, including 7-2 in the postseason, to finish third in the country.
Aloy, and a host of other Hogs, are gone, but Van Horn, who has been named Southeastern Conference Baseball Coach of the Year three times and led Arkansas to the CWS eight times, and his staff have a few cornerstone pieces to build around.
Dave Van Horn
It starts behind the plate with catcher Ryder Helfrick. The junior hit .305 with 15 home runs, 38 RBI and scored 47 runs.
“He was amazing last year, and he’s even better now,” Van Horn said. “He’s a really, really good player — on both sides, whether it’s catching and calling a game, or hitting. And he can run. He’s what you’re looking for. We’re fortunate to have him in our program. A lot of guys like him are already in AA (professional baseball). We’re excited he’s back. He’s leading the way. He’s just one of those guys you like being around because he’s that good, and he’s fun to be around. If you have a catcher who is a leader, it is a major plus. When you have a catcher who is seeing the whole field, and he can command some respect because of the way he plays and how hard he works, not just because he likes to be in charge, it’s big for your team.”
Another key cog is Aloy’s brother, Kuhio Aloy. Depending on recovery from a hand injury, the junior could slot into the right field position or serve as the designated hitter.
Ryder Helfrick
“He played right field in the Cape (Cod Baseball League),” Van Horn said. “He hurt his hand and had been resting it. There’s nothing broken. He’s been working on reads (in the outfield). It would be ideal for us if he could be a starting outfielder and not just a designated hitter, but we’ll see how it all plays out. He’s looked really good (coming back from injury). He’s gotten better every day.”
Kuhio Aloy hit .317 last year with 13 home runs, 70 RBI and 52 runs scored.
Junior Gabe Gaeckle is the top returning pitcher, but he also had a light fall.
“We didn’t pitch Gaeckle at all in the fall,” Van Horn said. “We let him rest and get strong. He pitched a lot last year, so we gave him a little down time. We had him lifting. He’s strong, really strong. We had him slowly ramp back up. I think it was good for him for the mental part of it, and we wanted him to get some rest.”
Parker Coil
Camden Kozeal
Cole Gibler
Gaeckle made 19 appearances with nine starts, going 4-2 with two saves and a 4.42 earned run average. He logged 71.1 innings, second on the team, with 92 strikeouts and 31 walks.
Filling out the infield, Van Horn said it will sort itself out. Candidates include TJ Pompey from Texas Tech University, and high school signees Carson Brumbaugh, Springdale’s Luke Cornelison, who pitched and played third base at Har-Ber High School, and Alexander Peck, among others.
“We have some really good young infielders,” Van Horn said. “Pompey can play short. He played second and third in his two years at Texas Tech. He started as a true freshman at third. He’s really good at both positions, and we’re working him at short. (Junior) Nolan Souza is still doing groundball work, and he’s outstanding, better than ever. He could play short.
“We actually have maybe three freshmen who can play short,” he said. “Carson Brumbaugh, who also pitches. Luke is a really good player and defender. He can hit. Alexander is a really good infielder. He can play all three positions — second, shortstop and third. We feel like we have some good candidates. When the smoke clears, we’ll play the best guy, maybe two guys. We’ll see.”
Cornelison was rated the No. 5 overall prospect, top third baseman in the state and the No. 18 third baseman in the country by Perfect Game. Brumbaugh, from Edmond, Oklahoma, was rated by Perfect Game as the No. 61 overall prospect in the nation and No. 22 shortstop. As a pitcher, he topped out at 96 miles per hour.
Landon Schaefer is also a factor. The Fayetteville High School product was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 20th round of the 2025 MLB Draft, but he chose the Razorbacks instead. He was rated the No. 1 overall prospect in Arkansas and No. 71 in the nation by Perfect Game.
Among returnees, Souza (.250, four HR, 22 RBI in 28 games), who is recovering from an injury, and junior first- and second-baseman Camden Kozeal (.333, 15 HR, 62 RBI in 60 games) will play important roles.
Back to the outfield, Damian Ruiz, a transfer from Lamar University, and Maika Niu, a transfer from Marshall University, are the top candidates in centerfield.
Ruiz was the No. 15 national transfer according to Baseball America. After two seasons at Houston Christian University, he transferred to Lamar and was named Southland Conference Hitter of the Year. He broke single-season program records for hitting streak at 32 games, on-base streak after reaching base in 49 straight games and single-season runs scored with 76.
He hit .388 in 56 starts with 83 hits, 22 doubles, seven home runs, 46 RBI, 130 total bases, 50 walks, a .607 slugging percentage, a .511 on-base percentage and 14 stolen bases. Ruiz recorded 25 multi-hit games and finished third in the SLC in average, seventh in slugging percentage, and first in on-base percentage, runs scored, hits and doubles. He was tied for fifth in NCAA Division I in runs scored and posted a .978 fielding percentage.
Niu, rated the No. 6 position player transfer by Baseball America, followed up his 15-homer spring at Marshall by winning Cape Cod Baseball League MVP honors. He led the wood-bat league with eight homers. In 58 games at Marshall, he hit .276 with 55 runs, 67 hits, 52 RBI, a .560 slugging percentage and 14 stolen bases.
Carson Wiggins
Hunter Dietz
Gabe Gaeckle
“I’ve had some great centerfielders here over the years who could flat out go get it,” Van Horn said. “Both of those guys can go get it and will challenge the wall. They know how to play once they get to the warning track. Niu throws really well. He was an infielder and wanted to play centerfield. He went to the Cape, said he wanted to play outfield, he did, and ended up being the Cape Player of the Year. He had a great summer and played great defense. He’s picked it up here as well and has gotten even better. We would love to have both of them in the lineup because they can both really run. They’ve done it in the past at the Division I level. There’s a lot of competition in the outfield this year.”
Also in the mix is Zack Stewart, a transfer portal addition from Missouri State, where he hit 44 home runs over three years. Last year, in 50 games, he hit .269 with 11 homers and 31 RBI. As a sophomore, he hit .300 with 21 home runs and 55 RBI.
The pitching starts with Gaeckle. Other returnees who could get innings are sophomore Cole Gibler and junior Colin Fisher. Gibler pitched 29.1 innings in 20 games last year and was 3-2 with a 3.99 ERA. He had 57 strikeouts with 12 walks. Fisher appeared in 16 games with five starts, threw 25.1 innings and was 3-0 with a 4.62 ERA. He had 31 strikeouts with 12 walks.
Parker Coil, Steele Eaves, Carson Wiggins and Hunter Dietz are other returnees to watch. Coil, who was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 16th round of the 2025 MLB Draft but opted to return to Arkansas, posted a 1.27 ERA in 21.1 innings of relief work. Eaves had a 1.86 ERA in eight relief appearances, Wiggins was 1-1 with a 3.21 ERA in 14 games and Dietz made just two appearances before being sidelined with an injury. Wiggins didn’t pitch in the fall following arm surgery.
“(Eaves) has always been confident and worked extremely hard since the day he walked in here,” Van Horn said. “His stuff has heavy sink; his velocity is up. It sits at 93 and could probably go a little more if he needs to. He still has command with the sink on his fastball, and that’s what we like.”
Dietz was rated the No. 20 overall prospect and No. 4 left-handed pitcher in the 2023 class by Prep Baseball Report, but he has battled injuries the last two years.
“His fall was really good; it was good for his confidence,” Van Horn said. “His velocity jumped up, and when he gets on top of that curve ball, it’s nasty. When he’s got two pitches going, plus now he’s got a third, he’s got conference starter written all over him. That’s what I see. He had a great first couple of weeks here as a freshman in the fall, and we thought ‘this guy is going to be special,’ and then the injury he had back in high school came back, and he ended up missing the whole year. Last year, he was still building back up. He was up and down. He went out in summer ball and got better every weekend. He came in here, and I think he’s made a statement. His stuff is really good.”
Newcomers who could make an impact are Ethan McElvain, who was 2-3 with one save and a 7.24 ERA last year at Vanderbilt, and Jackson Kircher, who had a 5.68 ERA in 13 games at Oklahoma.
Freshman Jordan Martin could also see some innings. He was the No. 1 overall prospect in Missouri, and the No. 75 overall prospect and No. 15 right-handed pitcher in the country according to Perfect Game.