No. 3 Auburn rode dominant defensive performances to two shutout wins against Georgia State on Sunday. The Tigers (20-1) won the first game 7-0 and the second game 9-0 in six innings. Auburn went 5-0 in the Wilson/DeMarini Classic.
In the first game, freshman Makayla Martin pitched a complete game to improve her record to 5-0. She allowed just four hits and struck out five Panthers.
The Tigers were in a scoreless deadlock until the third inning, when Carlee Wallace hit a two-run homer. Auburn ultimately pulled away in the sixth inning, when four runs came on singles by Victoria Draper, Tiffany Howard, Kasey Cooper and Wallace. Wallace's single was the final run scored in the game.
In the second game, Rachel Walters earned a win in her first start of the season, allowing one hit in four innings. Kaylee Carlson relieved Walters and pitched the final two innings, also allowing just one hit.
Auburn, playing as the road team in the final game of the tournament, went up early on a two-RBI single by Jade Rhodes. A groundout increased the first-inning lead to 3-0.
The score remained 3-0 until the fifth inning, when Auburn started the inning with four consecutive hits by Emily Carosone, Cooper, Wallace and Rhodes. Georgia State then made numerous mistakes to fall out of the game. With the bases loaded, Madi Gispon was hit by a pitch. A pair of Panthers errors then brought in two more runs, increasing Auburn's lead to 6-0.
Auburn ended the game with a three-run sixth inning, giving it its 12th run-rule win of the season and 11th shutout. Tiffany Howard led off the inning by becoming the school's all-time career leader in triples with her ninth. Doubles by Cooper and Wallace put the game away.
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