Alabama ace Alexis Osorio dominated to the tune of 14 strikeouts, as the No. 14 Crimson Tide avoided the sweep at the hands of the Auburn Tigers with a 3-2 win on Sunday afternoon.
The victory for the Crimson Tide halted a four-game skid, dating back to last weekend’s series loss to Ole Miss. Osorio eclipsed 300 pitches for the weekend in the game three victory, allowing only three Auburn hits. Tigers senior shortstop Haley Fagan contributed a pair of those hits with two solo home runs, one in the third and one in the fifth.
The ninth-ranked Tigers stranded ten runners on base in the loss, a trend which has plagued the offense all year long. Auburn (45-9, 17-7 SEC) loaded the bases in each of the opening innings, but left them that way without a run in both instances.
Freshman pitcher Ashlee Swindle started the game for the Tigers, struggling in 2.2 innings of work with three runs and four hits. Game two winner Makayla Martin replaced Swindle (2-1) amidst Alabama’s three-run third inning, pitching a shutout for the remainder of the contest.
Facing a 3-1 Alabama lead, Fagan smacked an opposite field solo homer in the fifth to cut the lead to one. Fagan had the last chance for Auburn at the plate, facing empty bases with two outs in the top of the seventh after Osorio dealt familiar strikeouts to the besieged Alyssa Rivera and Kendall Veach. Fagan grounded out to seal the deal.
Despite the loss, Auburn won the series on Saturday night, their first series win in Tuscaloosa in program history. With the win, Alabama (40-15, 12-11 SEC) avoided a sub-.500 mark in SEC play, which have been a first for the Tide in the history of their program.
Just minutes after the conclusion of game three in Tuscaloosa, the pivotal showdown between No. 8 Texas A&M and No. 11 Tennessee went final. The Volunteers picked up the win, 8-6, clinching the No. 2 seed in the SEC Tournament for Auburn, behind only the top-seeded Florida Gators.
The second-place regular season finish is the third in four seasons for Clint Myers, accompanying his 2014 and 2015 squads. The SEC Tournament begins Wednesday in Knoxville, Tennessee, however the Tigers won’t play until Thursday due to their first-round bye.
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