After the threat of severe weather forced Auburn to move Tuesday's game against Lipscomb to the Music City, the Tigers poured on nine runs in Nashville. Tyler Miller's four RBI and multi-homer day led the charge in a 9-7 Auburn victory.
“I think we need to continue to grow, and we definitely need to continue to play,” said head coach Butch Thompson. “That was the commitment in making the decision to come up here. No regrets there.
Miller hit the first pitch he saw in the game over the left-field fence in the top of the second. His fifth home run of the season gave Auburn a 1-0 lead as the JUCO transfer continues to showcase his offensive talents.
"Tyler Miller, his first two at-bats were huge for us," Thompson added. "We needed every one of them."
The junior leads the team in nearly every offensive category with a batting average of .436 at the plate. He leads the team with six home runs and is the only Tiger this season with over 20 RBI as he has 26.
On the bump for the Tigers was southpaw Peyton Glavine, making his first career start. The junior from Alpharetta, Georgia, pitched for just 1.1 innings, allowing four runs in the bottom of the second.
Kason Howell and the Tigers responded in the top of the third, putting up four runs to retake the lead. Howell started the inning with a leadoff homer, his first of the season, to bring the game within two runs.
Lipscomb’s Dylan Bierman forced two groundouts, but a pair of singles from Steven Williams and Rankin Woley kickstarted a two-out rally. Auburn’s next batter, Miller, repeated his at-bat from the second inning with another homer in the third.
Miller’s second home run of the day knocked in three runs. With one swing of the bat, the Tigers once again had the lead.
Ryan Bliss hit the fourth Auburn home run of the day on the first pitch of the fifth inning. Three walks in the inning and a couple of timely singles put three more runs on the board for Auburn. Bryson Ware’s single scored Williams, while Brody Moore’s single scored Ware and Woley to push the lead to 9-4.
After a couple of home runs and a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the fifth and sixth inning from Lipscomb, Auburn’s bullpen settled in.
Carson Swilling earned the win after allowing just one earned run over his 3.2 innings of relief. It was Swilling’s first career win.
"I knew my job was to throw strikes and give this team a chance to win," Swilling said. "That's what I did. I went out there, tried to do my best, let the defense work behind me, and we got some runs. That's how it worked out."
Joseph Gonzalez and Richard Fitts combined to pitch the final 3.1 innings, allowing one hit and striking out three along the way.
Fitts faced some trouble in the bottom of the ninth, allowing two walks in the inning. With runners on the corners and the winning run at the plate, Fitts faced Lipscomb’s Maddux Houghton.
Fitts forced Houghton to chase one on a two-ball, two-strike count, striking Houghton out to finish off the game.
Auburn will not return to Plainsman Park until March 26, as it embarks on a road series against No. 4 Ole Miss this upcoming weekend. That series kicks off on Friday at 6:30 p.m. CST and concludes on Sunday afternoon with all three games being broadcast on SEC Network-plus.
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