Auburn extends win streak to seven with victory at Jacksonville State

With a looming weekend series against No. 1 Tennessee on the horizon, Auburn took care of business on Tuesday, earning an 8-4 win over Jacksonville State to extend its win streak to seven games.

"This was a good win for us," said Auburn head coach Butch Thompson. 

The No. 19 Tigers (30-12) avenged their earlier home loss to the Gamecocks (18-20). The seven-game win streak for Auburn is tied with the Volunteers for the longest in the SEC.

Four pitchers saw the mound for Auburn, beginning with starter Mason Barnett.

Barnett lasted three innings, giving up four hits and a run while striking out five and walking two. Barnett allowed a baserunner each frame, but through three innings, he did not allow a run.

Barnett also had some defensive help from his teammates, particularly Kason Howell. With the game tied at zero in the third inning and a runner on second base, Jacksonville State batter T.J. Reeves hit a deep fly ball to center field. It appeared to be a two-run homer to put the Gamecocks ahead.

Howell had other plans. The Auburn center fielder climbed the fence and robbed Reeves of the home run. It was a catch worthy of the highlight reels and it kept the game scoreless.

​​"I actually worked on it during batting practice with Sonny [DiChiara] because he's always hitting bombs and I think I got one off him," Howell said. "I realized I could stick my foot in the fence, and it just played out.”

Howell’s robbery was just the latest in a series of exceptional plays by the Auburn outfield defense over the past two weeks, including Brody Moore throwing out the tying run from left field in Starkville, Mike Bello robbing a home run against South Carolina in right and what Howell accomplished on Tuesday in center field.

"We take for granted what Kason does," Thompson said. "You just don't notice the plays he makes because he makes them look routine. A spectacular opportunity shows up and he makes a play on the wall like that, and you get to see what a premium defender he is."

The Tigers squandered a scoring opportunity in the first when they stranded two on base. Auburn also made two outs on the basepaths in the first two frames, and the first three innings went by without a score.

The first inning, though scoreless, was somewhat momentous, as both Blake Rambusch and Sonny DiChiara reached base, the 40th consecutive game they have both reached.

Auburn’s bats finally broke through in the fourth inning, when Moore recorded the game’s first RBI, a single to center field that scored DiChiara, who had reached on a walk.

In the bottom of the frame, Barnett found trouble he could not escape. The Auburn starter allowed a lead-off home run to tie the game at one. Following consecutive walks, Barnett was pulled in favor of Konner Copeland, who inherited a two-on, no-outs jam.

Copeland got out of the inning without any further damage, as Rambusch threw out a runner trying to score on a ground ball.

Auburn was able to break the game open in the fifth, capitalizing on a plethora of mistakes made by the Gamecock pitching staff. 

Trey Fortner began the inning on the mound for Jacksonville State, but after hitting three batters and walking another, which allowed Auburn to score a run without a hit, Fortner was pulled from the game with the bases loaded and one out.

Caleb Marsh, who was Fortner’s replacement, promptly walked another to bring home another run. This was followed by a Bobby Peirce RBI single to score another, Auburn’s only hit of the inning. 

Marsh then threw a wild pitch, which brought the fourth run of the inning home. A Moore RBI groundout plated the final fifth-inning run for the Tigers.

The stat line for the Auburn fifth inning: five runs, one hit, three hit batsmen, and two walks. The Tigers were up 6-1 after an inning which proved to be the difference in the game.

The Tigers barely had time to celebrate their big inning before Copeland ran into trouble in the bottom of the fifth. The first three batters all reached on a single, double, and walk. An RBI single was the end of the line for Copeland, who earned his second win.

Copeland was replaced by Chase Allsup, who gave up a sacrifice fly but allowed no further damage in the fifth. Auburn’s lead was cut to 6-3.

Auburn got both runs back in the seventh, with four singles, the last of which was another RBI for Moore, his third of the game. 

"I was just trying to stay true to my approach and let the chips fall where they may from there,” Moore said. "Our mindset one through nine in the lineup is to get on base and let the guy behind you handle the rest."

A Nate LaRue sacrifice fly plated the last run of the day for the Tigers, who were up 8-3.

Allsup gave up a solo homer in the bottom of the frame, but it was too little, too late for the Gamecocks. Carson Swilling came in to pitch the final two innings and held the Gamecocks scoreless, preserving Auburn’s 30th win of the season.

Auburn’s road success has been a common theme over the season. With Tuesday’s win, the Tigers earned their 11th victory away from home. Last season, Auburn only had 10 victories away from Plainsman Park.

Now, Auburn will face the ultimate test - a road series against the nation’s top team, the Tennessee Volunteers. Tennessee is 38-3 with a 17-1 mark in conference play. 

Despite the arduous task ahead of them, the Tigers have every reason to be confident based on their past seven performances.

"We have a lot of confidence, and we're playing as a team," Howell said. "This is a great feeling heading into Knoxville, knowing we have that confidence."

The series will begin at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Friday. The first pitch for the series opener will be at 6 p.m. and will be televised by SEC Network.