As 10 batters came to the plate in the top of the first, Kendall Veach’s 15th home run of the season powered Auburn past the Bulldogs.
“Throughout our lineup, we were all getting hits,” Veach said. “Today at the plate, I was just trying to keep it simple. I just wanted to stay within myself and just see the ball and hit the ball.”
An all-around effort at the plate allowed Auburn to provide some relief to its pitching staff after ending the game in five innings. The final score resulted in a 9-0, run-rule victory for Auburn.
In the first inning, Taylon Snow and Casey McCrackin walked and were hit in by Alyssa Rivera and Tannon Snow.
Rivera added two hits on the day along with one run batted in. Tannon Snow also added one hit and one RBI on a double to left field.
Carmyn Greenwood continued the timely hitting with a double to left center, but the Tigers could not score Justus Perry from third before reaching three outs. Five runs in the top of the first provided a large cushion for Auburn going into the next few innings.
As pitcher Makayla Martin sat out, the Auburn pitching staff was a bit short-handed, but Ashlee Swindle took on the task and led the Tigers ruthlessly in the circle.
“My drop ball was really working for me today,” Swindle said. “I realized early on that they are aggressive hitters and just swinging, so I decided to keep the ball low and let my defense work.”
“We did a lot of good things today,” said Auburn head coach Mickey Dean. “I looked at the charts last night and when Ashlee can hit her spots, they are not going to be successful against her. Our defense played extremely well behind her.”
In the third inning, Perry scored Brittany Maresette with a double to centerfield and later scored on a sloppy throw. Greenwood then scored on a pass ball. Morgan Podany was advanced by Makenna Dowell and scored by McCrackin. That wrapped another excellent inning of batting for Auburn, adding four runs and tallying nine total runs.
Auburn could not scrape across a run in the fourth or fifth but racked up three outs in the bottom of the fifth to take down the Bulldogs and earn its second SEC series win in as many tries.
Auburn will host Kennesaw State on Wednesday before facing Georgia at home this weekend.
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