It was a busy Saturday for Auburn athletics as soccer traveled to take on Louisville, softball hosted a doubleheader, and baseball continued to battle against Ole Miss in the first conference series of the season.
Here's a recap of all the action from Saturday.
Baseball vs. Ole Miss
By Henry Patton
Auburn lost the second game of the three-game series 6-5 against Ole Miss Saturday at Swayze Field.
The Tigers started the game slowly, trailing 6-2 after the first three innings, and made a comeback attempt toward the end, but it was not enough.
“We just got out of the gate slow, but didn’t let them score after the third inning,” said head coach Butch Thompson.
After the first three innings, Brooks Fuller, Carson Swilling, and Blake Burkhalter all pitched in relief for starter Mason Barnett and allowed zero runs the rest of the game.
“Those three did an amazing job for us,” Thompson said. “Hopefully, we’re starting to see them turn the corner a little bit. We’re going to need them moving forward.”
The Tigers opened up the first with a Tyler Miller RBI single that scored Judd Ward from second, but the Rebels answered with three runs in the bottom half of the inning.
Auburn started the third off with a home run from Ryan Bliss and threatened to score more as they had runners on the corners with no outs but couldn’t capitalize.
Ole Miss responded with three runs in the bottom of the third to go up 6-2, ending Barnett’s day. Fuller came in and pitched 2.1 scoreless innings.
John Samuel Shenker had a pinch-hit RBI single in the sixth inning, then Bliss and Tyler Miller each hit a solo home run in the seventh inning to make the score 6-5. That was Bliss’s second home run of the day.
Auburn threatened to score in the eighth as they had the bases loaded, but they could not generate any runs.
Auburn has dropped two games in a row, but coach Thompson is sticking by the side of his team.
“It’s just going to be hard for me to say anything negative about my ballclub," Thompson said. "I’m going to hang in there with them. If I can ever get a team just to compete this way every single day and be right there with the tying run on base and keep swinging the bat and keep fighting to get back in the game, I’m going to hang with them.”
Rankin Woley extended his hit streak to 11 games, and Bliss's multi-homer game was the second of his career.
Auburn and Ole Miss will play the final game of the series Sunday at 1:30 p.m. CST.
Soccer vs. Louisville
By Larry Robinson
After a scoreless 107 minutes, Auburn senior defender Sarah Houchin sent a penalty kick to the far-left post, striking the back of the net and securing a 1-0 win for the Tigers against Louisville on Saturday. The goal was Houchin’s first game-winner as a Tiger and the fifth goal of her career.
“It was actually a long stop for the PK, so I was trying just not to get it in my head,” said Auburn defender Sarah Houchin. “Talking to my teammates, they kept me focused. We practice PKs, game situations all the time, so I knew I had it down.”
Auburn is now on a two-game winning streak and has won four of its last five games.
Freshman goalkeeper Maddie Prohaska and the Tigers' defense once again proved effective, turning in the team’s fourth clean sheet in just five games played. The shutout marks two in a row for the Tigers and the seventh of the 2020-21 season.
“Our defense played a good game again today,” Houchin said. “It was a little rough at times, but we held it strong and then eventually got it done on offense.”
Auburn more than doubled the amount of shots taken by Louisville with 13 compared to the Cardinal six. Of the 13 shots, seven landed on target for the Tigers, while only two of six landed on target for Louisville.
Despite taking nine shots in regulation, the Tigers' best offensive opportunities would come in the matches’ two overtime periods.
Auburn forward Marissa Arias made a run up the Cardinal left flank midway through the first overtime but couldn’t connect on the near-post shot. In the second overtime, Kori Locksley attempted a pass to teammate Hailey Whitaker near the rear post, only for the ball to be scooped up by the opposing team's goalkeeper.
After missing her shot attempt in the first overtime, Arias looked to redeem herself with a strong run up the right flank in the second overtime. She was fouled inside the goalies’ box, with the Auburn team subsequently being awarded a penalty kick.
After an injury timeout, Houchin stepped up to the ball and struck the back of the net to seal the game, leaving the Cardinal goalkeeper frozen in her tracks.
“The composure by our captain Sarah Houchin to score that PK,” said Auburn head coach Karen Hoppa. “She had so much time to think about it with the injury and just buried it. I’m really pleased with the girls today.”
Nine different players had shot attempts for the Tigers in Saturday’s matchup, with 16 Tigers seeing action in total. Six Tigers played 100 or more minutes in the double-overtime win.
Auburn will stay on the road and face Alabama on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. CST.
Softball vs. Kennesaw State/Florida State
By Jake Gonzalez
Auburn dropped both games of its doubleheader Saturday at Jane B. Moore Field in the War Eagle Battle. Auburn lost game one to Kennesaw State 2-0 and game two to No. 13 Florida State 10-1.
With the losses, Auburn’s record falls to 16-6 on the season, and the Tigers are currently on a five-game losing streak.
Game 1:
Auburn lost game one of its doubleheader to Kennesaw State 2-0.
The scoring got started in the top of the second inning when Kennesaw State’s Taylor Cates hit a solo shot to dead center field. Two innings later, Cates did it again with another solo shot that sailed over the left-field wall.
Cates was the only player to cross the plate in game one on Saturday.
Auburn freshman Shelby Lowe started the game for Auburn and went 5.2 innings giving up two earned runs on five hits. With the result, she picks up her second loss of the season, and it moves her to 6-2.
The Tigers finished the day with six hits and left six runners in scoring position.
Game 2:
Auburn lost game two of the doubleheader in a five-inning 10-1 loss to No. 13 Florida State.
Florida State came out swinging from the start. In five innings, the Seminoles scored 10 runs on nine hits. Auburn had just two hits, both coming from Kelsey Schmidt.
Against the Seminoles, Schmidt was 2-for-2 and knocked in a home run in the last inning to prevent a shutout.
Freshman Maddie Penta started on the mound and pitched 3.1 innings. Penta gave up four earned runs on five hits and struck out five. With the result, Penta falls to 6-3 on the season.
Auburn will look to bounce out of the losing streak when they take on No. 13 Florida State on Sunday at 1 p.m. CST. Following that game, Auburn will take on Kennesaw State at 4 p.m. CST to close out the War Eagle Battle.
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