MONTICELLO, Ark. – The University of Arkansas at Monticello baseball team outright clinched the 2026 GAC regular season and will open play in the 2026 GAC postseason as the No. 1 overall seed, taking on the No. 8-seeded East Central University Tigers. The two squads will face each other at 1:00 p.m., Thursday, April 30, on the Babe Ruth Field at Majestic Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. This is the first time these two teams have met in the postseason.
GAC CHAMPIONSHIP / HOT SPRINGS INFORMATION
Majestic Park: Majestic Park (Babe Ruth Field) is located at 102 Alcorn St, Hot Springs, AR 71901 in Hot Springs, Arkansas.
Tournament Bracket: Online and printable brackets can be found here.
T-Shirts: All tournament merchandise will be sold online and can be found here.
Hot Springs Information: Information about hotels, restaurants, and attractions in the Hot Springs area may be found at: https://www.hotsprings.org/
REGULAR SEASON MEETING WITH THE TIGERS
Conference Series – The Boll Weevils swept the Tigers at home in the regular season, 8-1, 6-5, 3-2. Camden Tanner kicked off the scoring in the series opener, sending the first pitch of the inning over the wall in center field. The Boll Weevils tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the second, with Kyle Tolley bringing in the first on a sac bunt and Tanner driving in the second on a sac fly to right. East Central grabbed its first run in the top of the fourth, scoring from second on a blooper into right field. Kyle Tolley responded in the bottom of the inning with a solo shot to right center field, making it a 4-1 lead for UAM. Jackson Riedling crossed the plate in the fifth for run number five, scoring on an infield error. Elijah Olaybal drove in Tanner on a ripped single through the six-hole. The inning would end with an extended Weevil lead, 6-1. Arkansas-Monticello scored two more in the seventh on an ECU error, pushing the lead to 8-1. No other runs were scored in the ball game, resulting in a series opener win for the boys in green and white. The Boll Weevils rallied late in both games two and three. East Central gained an early lead in game two in the first inning, capitalizing on a bunt single and an error to take a 1-0 advantage. The Tigers added another run in the third on an RBI ground ball to extend the lead to 2-0. Arkansas-Monticello responded in the bottom of the third on a Daniel Lizarraga single to right center, scoring Kyle Tolley on the drive. Eli Marvin tied the game at 2-2 on an RBI single. East Central regained control in the fourth inning, drawing back-to-back walks with the bases loaded. The inning would conclude with ECU leading 4-2. A solo home run in the sixth extended the Tigers’ lead to 5-2. The Weevils answered in the bottom half of the inning, starting with a run scoring on an error. Kyle Tolley followed with a two-RBI single up the middle to tie the game at 5-5. Arkansas-Monticello completed the comeback in the eighth inning, as Gabe Kuttenkuler launched a solo home run to left center to give the Weevils a 6-5 lead. No other runs were scored in the ball game, resulting in a win for UAM to secure a series win. East Central struck first in the series finale with an RBI single to take a 1-0 lead. The Tigers added another run in the fourth inning, scoring a run on a double play to extend their lead to 2-0. Arkansas-Monticello responded in the fifth inning, beginning with a Kyle Tolley RBI single. A throwing error on the play allowed Gabe Kuttenkuler to score, cutting the deficit to one. Camden Tanner delivered the go-ahead runs later in the inning, driving in two runs on a double to left field that gave the Weevils a 3-2 lead. The UAM pitching staff shut down East Central over the final two innings to secure the win and the 3-0 series sweep. Bryce Louis, John White, and Nathan McManus earned the wins on the rubber in games one, two, and three, respectively, with White earning the save in game three.
ALL-TIME SERIES WITH THE TIGERS
Arkansas-Monticello leads the Tigers in the all-time series 34-9. The squads first met in March of 2003, a 5-0 win for the Boll Weevils. The longest win streak is 14 games, an ongoing streak that began in March of 2021. The largest margin of victory for the men in green and white came via a 14-0 decision in February of 2024. At home, the Weevils are 19-0, in Ada, they are 15-9 on the road, with a 33-8 overall conference record. Through 40 games played, Arkansas-Monticello has plated 344 runs for an average of 8 runs per game.
WEEVILS IN THE NCAA TOP-10 STATISTICS
– Camden Tanner ranks 4th in batting average at .451.
– Kyle Tolley ranks tied for 5th with 6 triples.
– Weevils Baseball overall ranks 10th in home runs with 74 in 49 games.
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE WEEVILS
The Boll Weevils went 2-1 this past weekend, taking on the Muleriders of Southern Arkansas University. UAM bested SAU 9-8 on Thursday, April 23, to outright claim the 2026 GAC Regular Season championship. Game two of the series saw the Weevils produce one of the most explosive innings of baseball this season, putting up 11 runs, six of them before the first out, securing a series win with a 15-8 result. The Muleriders took the final game three, 7-1, to close the series.
2026 GAC TOURNAMENT BRACKET ONE SCHEDULE
GAME 1
Thursday, April 30
9:30 AM
No. 4 Southeastern Oklahoma State vs No. 5 Southern Arkansas
GAME 2
Thursday, April 30
1:00 PM
No. 1 Arkansas-Monticello vs No. 8 East Central
GAME 3
Friday, May 1
9:30 AM
Game 1 Loser vs Game 2 Loser
GAME 4
Friday, May 1
4:30 PM
Game 1 Winner vs Game 2 Winner
GAME 5
Saturday, May 2
9:30 AM
Game 3 Winner vs Game 4 Loser
GAME 6
Saturday, May 2
4:30 PM
Game 4 Winner vs Game 5 Winner
GAME 7
Sunday, May 3
TBD
Second Championship Game – If Necessary
GAME RECAPS
After the conclusion of each game, Weevil Baseball will have a release posted to uamsports.com, X, and Facebook, which will give a recap of the game. They can be found on the schedule page as a clickable link after the end of each game, or on UAM Sports social media accounts.
How to follow the Weevils: For more information on Arkansas-Monticello Men’s Baseball, visit www.uamsports.com and follow the team’s social media channels on X, Instagram and Facebook.
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