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A spirit that is not afraid

Auburn defeats Aggies 8-5 for series win

<p>Joseph Gonzalez (45) pitching for Auburn against Texas A&amp;M on May 16, 2021</p>

Joseph Gonzalez (45) pitching for Auburn against Texas A&M on May 16, 2021

Auburn ended its final home SEC series with a series win over Texas A&M as the Tigers defeated the Aggies 8-5 Sunday at Plainsman Park.

With the win, Auburn improved to 22-25 overall and is 8-19 in SEC play. 

The Tigers are currently tied for 12th in the SEC with the Aggies. But with the series win, Auburn holds the tiebreaker for the final spot in the SEC Tournament with one SEC series left in the regular season. 

Auburn’s bats jumped on the Aggies early as they scored three runs in the first inning. A fielding error by Texas A&M allowed Auburn’s first run to score before Kason Howell’s RBI single drove in two.

Texas A&M homered to lead off the second inning, but Auburn responded with another three-run frame. Another error by the Aggies scored the first Auburn run in the second before RBI singles by Rankin Woley and Garrett Farquhar. 

The Aggies loaded the bases with one out in the top of the third before a groundout double play ended the scoring opportunity. 

Auburn’s 6-1 lead was cut into in the fourth as Texas A&M scored two unearned runs on a throwing error. In the bottom of the fourth, the Tigers answered as Howell’s RBI double with two outs drove in Cam Hill.

Howell was one of four Tigers with multiple hits and tied his career-high with three RBI. 

“You have to have a simple approach and look for the fastball,” Howell said. “You can’t be guessing or anything. You just have to react and put your hands where the ball is, hit it hard and see what happens.”

Trace Bright started on the mound for Auburn and pitched four innings. He allowed three runs, one earned and six hits in his four innings of work. 

“It was just my job to get out there and give us a chance to win. That’s all I wanted to do,” Bright said. “I wish I could’ve gone a little bit longer, but Joseph did a great job coming in and picking me up.”

With a 7-3 lead going into the fifth, Joseph Gonzalez took the mound for the Tigers. He pitched 3.2 innings, giving up three hits, two runs, one earned and struck out three. 

After the Aggies scored a run in both the sixth and eighth inning, Auburn tacked on its final run in the eighth to make it an 8-5 game. 

Judd Ward sent a ball back at the pitcher to drive in Farquhar for Auburn’s eighth run of the game. Farquhar entered the game in the second for Brody Moore. He was 2-for-4 on the day with a run and RBI.

“He’s taken every rep with these guys in practice, and he’s made the most of his opportunity and helped the ball club this week,” head coach Butch Thompson said of Farquhar.

Carson Skipper pitched 1.1 innings and picked up his first save of the season. The junior has earned two wins and a save in his last three performances.

“It was amazing what Trace Bright, Joseph Gonzales, and Carson Skipper did,” Thompson said. “If we had gotten past those guys, we were going to be looking at guys’ third outing since Wednesday. I tip my hat for what these three men did for us today.”

Auburn wraps up its 2021 home slate against North Alabama on Tuesday at 6 p.m. CST. 

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Jake Weese | Sports Editor

Jake Weese, senior in journalism with a minor in history, is The Plainsman's sports editor.

@TheJakeWeese

Sports@theplainsman.com 


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