Auburn's pitching staff dominated Binghamton Friday afternoon, Feb. 13, as the Tigers shutout the Bearcats 2-0 at Plainsman Park.
The Tigers stranded a few key runners who were in position to score, but the bullpen took control after an early homerun from a returning star.
Sophomore ace Keegan Thompson settled in early and retired the first 11 batters after junior right fielder Jordan Ebert hit a deep shot over Plainsman Park's green monster in the first inning to give the Tigers momentum on opening day in front of 2,705 fans.
"We pitched the ball really well," said head coach Sunny Galloway. "I thought all three of them were really efficient. We didn't want to over evaluate. We wanted to come out and find victory, and we did."
Thompson had a no-hitter through the first three innings, but allowed his first hit in the top of the fourth inning to senior outfielder Jake Thomas.
"I felt good," Thompson said. "I kind of struggled at first on my fastball command. It's the first game so not everyone is on their game every time."
Junior college transfer Bo Decker started out dangerous at the plate in his first appearance for the Tigers, finishing 2-4.
The newcomer was Auburn's designated hitter, but Galloway said he has a chance to start at left field.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Decker ripped a slow-hanging curveball to left field for a double and was eventually drove in to score by sophomore catcher Blake Logan to extend the Tigers' lead to 2-0.
"We had some quality left-handed hitters that we could of hit," Galloway said. "We knew there guy was a slider guy. Bo did a good job. He stayed on some balls and swung it pretty good."
Decker wasn't the only Tiger hitting attacking the ball at the plate.
Besides Ebert's bomb over the green monster in the first inning, sophomore center fielder Anfernee Grier hit a hot shot off left field wall and slid in safely for a double in the third inning, although the Tigers couldn't score from the play.
"I thought we hit some balls hard early," Galloway said. "The first two batters hit the ball hard. Jordan (Ebert) got it out of the yard."
It was the most strikeouts for Auburn's pitching staff since they had 16 against Florida Atlantic in 2010.
While Thompson recorded the win after finishing with five strikeouts and no walks, other pitchers stepped up to maintain the victory.
The Tigers decided to save Thompson's arm in the fifth inning and replaced him with Cole Lipscomb, who finished with eight strikeouts. The four-inning relief appearance was the redshirt sophomore's longest outing of his career.
Lipscomb was tested in the top of the sixth inning when the Bearcats had their first runners in scoring position with two outs.
After a brief settle-down from new pitching coach Tom Holliday, the right-handed pitcher struck out junior Reed Gamache to end the inning.
Junior right-hander Justin Camp closed things out for the Tigers as he struck out two Bearcats in the ninth to get the save and give Auburn their first win of the season.
"Keegan was very efficient with his pitch count," Galloway said. "Cole Lipscomb had to get out of jam. Camp just came in on the back end. He's a max effort guy. He fits that role really well."
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