Kaylee Carlson threw her fourth complete game shutout of the season to guide the No. 7 Auburn softball team to a 2-0 win at South Carolina Friday night. Carlson earned her SEC-leading 22nd win of 2017 in the seven-inning contest captured by the Tigers (38-7, 11-5 SEC).
“I thought Kaylee Carlson pitched extremely well,” said head coach Clint Myers. “We’ve got to do a better job of swinging the bats, but our defense was outstanding.”
Carlson needed just 87 pitches to shut down the South Carolina (27-19, 3-12) offense. The junior scattered four hits and notched three strikeouts.
Offensively, Kasey Cooper and Victoria Draper each went 2-for-4. Cooper launched a double and touted one RBI, while Draper crossed the plate twice in her fourth multi-hit performance against the SEC this season.
Alyssa Rivera rounded out the offense with a single in the fifth, extending her career-best hitting streak to 11 consecutive games.
Auburn tied a season-high with three stolen bases and also picked up its 36th double play of the season, which is tops in the country.
The Tigers opened the scoring in their first chance at the dish. Draper led off with a single and then swiped second. Wallace then put a ball in play that forced an error and allowed Draper to quickly work her way home for the game’s first run.
In the third, Draper lifted another base knock to the left-center gap and stole second once again. Cooper drilled a double to the same gap and extended the lead to 2-0.
That was all Carlson needed as she used four 1-2-3 innings to highlight the shutout on the road.
Auburn and South Carolina resume the series Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. CT.
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