FORT SMITH, Ark. - University of Arkansas - Fort Smith Baseball will throw out the first pitch of the 2026 season Thursday at the Lions visit Henderson State in the opening game of the Henderson State Invitational.
The Lions will take on the Reddies at 5 p.m. before battling Harding at 1:30 Friday at Clyde Berry Field in Arkadelphia. Saturday the Lions will cross the road to visit Ouachita Baptist at 1 p.m. before closing out the weekend against the host Reddies at 1:30 p.m. Sunday.
Live stats and video links for all four games can be found at uafortsmithlions.com.
NOTES:
LAST SEASON: UAFS finished the 2025 season with a 13-33 overall record.
SEASON OPENER: The Lions have won 14 straight season openers.
KEY RETURNERS: UAFS returns outfielder CJ Snowden and starting pitcher Aden Almeida to lead the Lions this season. Snowden hit .228 with two homers and 10 RBIs last year and was 6-for-6 on stolen bases. Almeida was 1-2 in five starts with 24 strikeouts in 34.1 innings pitched.
NEWCOMERS: UAFS has 21 newcomers on its rosters this season.
SCOUTING HSU: The Reddies went 32-24 last season and qualified for the NCAA II Central Regional. They lost their top five hitters from a year ago and return outfielder Nate Moore, who hit .308 in 2025.
SCOUTING HU: The Bisons went 41-19 a season ago and qualified for the NCAA II Central Regional and return preseason NCBWA First Team All-America third baseman Logan Lacey, who batted .338 with 19 homers and 58 RBIs with 70 runs scored.
SCOUTING OBU: The Tigers went 24-25 in 2025 and bring back preseason Second Team All-America starting pitcher Chase Oberle, who went 5-5 with 97 strikeouts and a 3.90 ERA in 92.1 innings pitched. Outfielder Garrett Graham is the top returning hitter after batting .305 with eight home runs and 36 RBIs last season.
THE SERIES: The Lions are 11-8 all-time against Henderson State, 2-5 versus Harding and 8-6 against Ouachita Baptist.
HEAD COACH: Todd Holland enters his 12th season leading the Lions with a 550-514 career record. He is 242-255 leading the Lions.
