FAYETTEVILLE -Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn definitely went against the percentages when he sent Aaron Murphree in to pinch-hit in the fifth inning against Tennessee on Friday night.

But ...

His hunch paid off big-time.

Murphree, hitting only .167 in Southeastern Conference games, smashed an off-speed pitch to the left-center field for a two-out, two-run triple.

That enable the Razorbacks to secure their first lead en route to a 5-4 win against the Volunteers in front of 3,056 in Baum Stadium.

"He had talked to me a couple innings prior and he said to be ready," Murphree said. "He said I might be coming in. I had an idea, so it wasn't like I came off completely cold.

"I had a feeling, I'd be going in."

Murphree, pinch-hitting for Sean Jones, sent his drive off the wall. That triple gave Arkansas a 3-2 lead. He said he thought it might leave the park.

"I thought it might have a chance off the bat," Murphree said. "I hit it up there a pretty good ways. The wind was blowing out a little bit out. I thought it might have had a chance.

"I knew it was going to be at the wall or gone. I was just hoping for the best, man.

"I knew I was going to be seeing a lot of off-speed with guys in scoring position. Guys have been throwing a lot of off-speed pitches and stuff. I knew I was going to have to hit an off-speed pitch. I just got after."

Van Horn said Murphree's blast was a momentum changer.

"That was big for him," Van Horn said. "I know he was smiling from ear-to-ear. He deserved that. He's been fighting it. He still comes out and works hard in batting practice. He got an opportunity and delivered. "It was highly appreciated."

Murphree, who started the season by hitting 12 home runs in his first 12 games, has struggled in the SEC.

Prior to Friday night, he was only 6-for-36 and his last RBI came on March 26. His last extra-base hit was on March 15.

"I cooled off a little bit after the (Texas) A&M tournament," Murphree said. "I knew I couldn't keep up that pace going. That was wild. I started pulling off balls a little bit. Got back in the cage, just trying to get my swing back where it was.