For a program like the Auburn University softball Tigers, budding towards greatness with a championship-driven mindset and superstar athletes, there are moments that will define such an up and coming dynasty.
Last season, in the thick of their conference schedule, Auburn was tabbed the No. 2 team in the country, their highest ranking in the history of the team. The Tigers fell to the Oklahoma Sooners in the Women’s College World Series National Championship, but advanced to the series for the first time ever in the process. That series is well-remembered by Tiger fans for Auburn’s 11 unanswered runs in game two, which erased an early seven-run deficit. That night was capped by Emily Carusone’s walk-off grand slam.
The 2017 edition of Auburn softball was pegged early on as a contender for the national title and, after defeating Oklahoma on Opening Day and solidifying their spot firmly in the top five, it seemed that the media’s assumption of Auburn’s returning talent had proved valid.
Then came the distractions.
2016 ESPNW and SEC Player of the Year Kasey Cooper got off to a rugged start. The Tiger bats never could pick up steam against upper-level competition, placing much of the pressure on the shoulders of ace pitchers Kaylee Carlson and Makayla Martin. Carlson tossed the second perfect game of program history during this stretch against Ohio State, however it was overshadowed by the disruptions Auburn would face in the coming months.
First, it was associate head coach Corey Myers, who resigned. Myers worked with the pitching staff. The resignation was regarded as a huge blow for the ladies in the circle.
Auburn then found themselves four Tigers short on the roster, as weeks after Emily Spain stepped away from the team, Haley Fagan, Makayla Martin and Brittany Maresette were suspended indefinitely after being arrested on drug charges.
Clint Myers squad trudged ahead however, winning the SEC series at South Carolina days after the suspensions. The Tigers took games one and two both by a score of 2-0, but were shut out by the bottom-feeding Gamecocks in the final game. Recognizing the Tigers’ lack of offensive prowess and consistent game two pitching, the Top 25 poll sent Auburn plummeting down to the No. 9 spot, their lowest placement of 2017.
No. 9 Auburn took game one of their final home series of the year, defeating Mississippi State behind the arm of Kaylee Carlson. The Tigers struggled in multiple areas, however. Shortstop Whitney Jordan, filling in for Fagan, committed a trio of detrimental errors, while the bottom portion of the Auburn lineup continued to struggle in the hitting department.
The Tigers packed some serious punch. The pitching had been dominant and the defense led the nation in double plays. The offense, however, will likely fall well short of their 2016 mark of 7.94 runs per game.
For momentum-shifting, season-defining, postseason-like impact, enter Ms. Carlee Wallace.
With the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh, no outs, trailing by one, Wallace obliterated a walk-off grand slam to cement Auburn as the victors of the Saturday evening contest and the series. After the Bulldogs touted a 2-0 lead for most of the night, the Tigers walked away winners with a final score of 6-2.
Offensively struggling shortstop Casey McCrackin, filling in for the defensively struggling Jordan, set up for Wallace by knocking a solo home run just inside the left foul pole to tie things up.
“I was just prepared to get on,” McCrackin said. “A walk, hit by a pitch, anything to get on just to get everything started. Hitting a home run was not planned. I knew it was going to be over the fence, I just didn’t know if it was going to be fair.
“It was really exciting. Rounding the bases, you don’t think about your batting average, you just think about everyone gathering around you, so happy that you picked them up.”
Slap-hitters KK Crocker and Victoria Draper both followed up with singles, setting up for Kasey Cooper. Cooper was the only Tiger who had provided consistent offense up to this point, flaunting a 3 for 3 clip at the plate. Because of this, Mississippi State pitcher Alexis Silkwood intentionally walked the third baseman to load the bases for Wallace.
“I didn’t take it personally, I wouldn’t want [Cooper] to beat me either,” Wallace said. “I guarantee she would have done the exact same thing that I did if they had given her something to hit. My job was really simple, I could have hit the ball anywhere. My teammates took the pressure off me for sure.”
Wallace was reminded of Carusone’s grand slam in the World Series, and was asked if the two were on the same level.
“I don’t know about that,” Wallace laughed. “I think that still tops mine, but I think it’s a good way to keep us rolling. That was a big win for us.”
The five-run explosion in the seventh inning was not conclusive of the achievement of Auburn’s bats up to that point. Cooper had found success, yet all other batters were 3 for 20 combined heading into the final stanza.
Just like Friday’s contest, Mississippi State (34-17, 8-12 SEC) got out to a 2-0 lead thanks to home runs. Carolina Seitz added her second homer of the weekend, while Olivia Golden’s only hit of the night was a solo shot that broke the deadlock at 0.
Silkwood (14-6) suffered the series-clinching loss, putting out a trio of strikeouts in the process. The Bulldog pitcher gave Auburn fits out of the gates, allowing only one run in the first six innings. MSU changed pitchers to Cassaday Knudsen after Cooper loaded the bases. It was Knudsen who fell victim to Wallace’s hit, Auburn’s first grand slam of the season.
“We’ve been waiting for that kind of a game for a long time,” Auburn head coach Clint Myers said. “You saw the life in the dugout, you saw the life in the stands, it was a great win for everybody. That’s the type of play that we’ve got to have. It’s about time, we knew we were a better offensive team.”
Kaylee Carlson (24-3) went the distance in back-to-back nights, as Myers elected not to go with freshman Ashlee Swindle for game two. It remains unclear if Makayla Martin will return for the final game of the series. Myers jokingly made the situation in the circle clearer by adding that Sunday’s pitcher “won’t be Kaylee Carlson.”
The Tigers (42-8, 14-6 SEC) will take to the home field for the final time in the regular season on Sunday at Jane B. Moore, as they will look to capture their second sweep of the year.
“It’s good for us, the postseason is coming up,” Wallace said. “It’s good to keep the competitive juices flowing. We’re fighters and we fight until the end. It’s a little bit later than teams of the past for us, but there’s no better time than right now to show everyone that’s our MO.”
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