UCF starter Robby Howell was 10-0 in the regular season. He earned All-American honors and was named AAC Pitcher of the Year. The Knights were 12-3 with their ace on the mound, and looked to carry that momentum into postseason play. Auburn halted that momentum quickly in Tallahassee.
Behind Keegan Thompson’s sparkling start, Auburn (36-24) defeated UCF (40-21) 7-4 in the opening game of the Tallahassee Regional.
“Keegan Thompson was really good,” Auburn head coach Butch Thompson said. “We just got a victory against a young man that’s 10-0. We got some base runners, we did some things, we scored a couple of times. We showed resilience, we got to the (UCF) bullpen, and we outlasted them.”
Thompson (7-4) tied a season-high with eight innings pitched as he allowed just two runs on four hits with a season-high nine strikeouts. He finished the afternoon with a season-high 119 pitches, 79 for strikes.
“Today was the best I’ve felt all year,” Keegan Thompson said. “We had a week and a half off, rest. I’ve just got to come out there, throw strikes, go after guys, let the defense work behind me and it worked out today.”
Auburn jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the second inning with an RBI double by Jay Estes, who then scored on an error by UCF first baseman Rylan Thomas.
Thomas made up for his error in the bottom half of the inning with a long home run to right-center field, which cut the Auburn lead to 2-1.
The score remained 2-1 through the middle innings until Auburn extended its lead to 4-1 with single runs in the sixth and seventh innings. Josh Anthony had an RBI single in each of the two innings.
The Tigers’ biggest offensive blow of the afternoon came in the top of the eighth when freshman Will Holland blasted a three-run home run over the wall in left-center field to push Auburn’s lead to 7-1. It was Holland’s third big fly of the year.
“I didn’t think it was gone when I hit it,” Holland said. “It’s big. That was fun. Anything I can do to help the team is just amazing.”
UCF added three runs in the final two innings, but it was too little, too late for the Knights.
Daniel Robert finished the day 3-for-4 for Auburn. The Tigers had 13 hits with each starter recording at least one hit. Anthony, Estes and Holland each had two hits.
Howell (10-1) went seven innings for the Knights allowing four runs on a season-high 10 hits. He walked five and struck out four. Thomas and Kam Gellinger each had home runs for UCF.
Auburn will play at 6 p.m. CT Saturday night in the winner’s bracket game vs. Tennessee Tech, who upset top-seeded Florida State. The Seminoles will take on UCF at 11 a.m. CT in an elimination game.
Casey Mize will be on the mound for Auburn as it tries to advance to the regional championship game on Sunday.
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