After a 6-0 victory the day before, Auburn looked to make another statement against Chicago State on Saturday.
The Tigers did just that, and then some, blasting the visitors from Illinois 16-2 at Plainsman Park on Saturday
Junior left-hander Jack Owen got the start on the mound, and he had no problem mowing through the Cougars lineup. He pitched a scoreless first three innings, and finished the day with six strikeouts over six innings.
The scoring for Auburn started off in the second. One pitch after Kason Howell reached on an error, senior infielder Rankin Woley hit a blast over the left field wall to notch an early 2-0 lead. He finished the day 3-for-3 with four RBIs.
The third inning saw seven Tigers cross home plate, fueled by a two-out rally with six extra-base hits in a row. They would finish the day with 10 extra-base hits, a new season high.
“Two out hits win ball games.” Woley said. “It really devastates the other team.”
Auburn’s pitching was met with little resistance. After Owen was pulled, a combination of Richard Fitts, Drew Baker and Seb Thomas closed out the game for the Tigers. With the immense run support behind them, they had no trouble racking up the Cougar’s hitters, allowing only one hit in three innings.
Steven Williams had another standout performance, going 2-for-4 with a walk, along with a towering home run in the fourth. His batting average is up to .393 on the season, with 12 RBI.
“Easy pop, easy power.” Woley said describing his teammate, Williams. “I think it just makes us so much more dynamic.”
Coach Butch Thompson was proud of his team’s performance, and is hopeful that this offense is a pattern.
“From the first hitter on, I liked the connection of our ballclub.” Thompson said afterwards. “I saw our brains at work.”
The Tigers will finish their series against Chicago State on Sunday at 1 p.m. CST. They will start SEC play next Friday, March 20 at Missouri.
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Dylan Fox, Junior in Civil Site Design Engineering, joined The Plainsman as a sports writer in Spring 2020. From Geneva, IL.
