Will Holland hit a pair of solo home runs, and Eduardo Julien hit a three-run homer as Auburn beat Alabama 5-2 in the 10th Capital City Classic at Riverwalk Stadium in Montgomery on Tuesday night.
Jay Estes shined defensively, and Calvin Coker closed the Tide out as the Tigers won their ninth Capital City Classic in 10 tries. Auburn’s Butch Thompson won his first matchup against former assistant, now Alabama head coach, Brad Bohannon.
“Man, Will Holland, those two swings he had tonight were beautiful,” Auburn coach Butch Thompson said. “Jay Estes changes the whole course of the ballgame with the three plays he made defensively.
“I thought Calvin Coker did great work for us and was pretty efficient.”
Freshman left-hander Jack Owen got the start for Auburn and pitched four scoreless innings, giving up one hit and walking two, to earn his first-career win. Welby Malczewski came in for relief and gave up a run on three hits in one inning. After Elliott Anderson walked the only hitter he replaced, Coker took over.
Coker, who pitched Friday and Sunday at Kentucky, pitched the last four innings, giving up two hits and one run to earn the save in front of the largest crowd in Riverwalk Stadium history.
“We didn’t play Auburn baseball in Lexington. We didn’t execute,” said Holland of the team losing two of three at Kentucky last weekend. “We just came out here tonight to try to get the train rolling. We ended up doing that. I think everyone in the lineup hit a ball hard tonight.”
The Tigers jumped out early, scoring four runs in the second inning. Conor Davis doubled and Jake Estes singled, setting the stage for Julien, Auburn’s freshman designated hitter. He drove a 1-0 pitch over the right field fence to give Auburn a 3-0 lead. One batter later, Holland drove a 1-2 pitch over the left field fence for his first home run of the game.
Holland wasn’t done yet. The sophomore shortstop came out swinging again in the seventh, leading off with a home run over the left-center field fence for his second bomb of the night. The Tigers now have 27 homers on the season, after only having 30 all year.
Holland, Steven Willams, Davis and Estes each had two of Auburn’s 13 hits.
“I definitely had a chip on my shoulder,” said Coker after giving up five runs including two home runs in two appearances at Kentucky. “I was ready tonight. I was locked in. I was definitely ready and it’s tough to lose when you’ve got a defense like that behind you.”
The Tigers improve to 21-5 going into a weekend series against Missouri at Plainsman Park. Alabama falls to 16-10.
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