An early five-run deficit was too much for Auburn to overcome, and the No. 18 Tigers fell in the series finale to No. 15 Georgia, 6-3.
”We continued to battle throughout the entire game,” said Auburn head coach Mickey Dean.
After a complete game performance on Friday night, Maddie Penta’s Sunday start did not go as planned.
Penta had her shortest outing of conference play, going on 1.1 innings and giving up five runs on five hits, including two homers. The struggles of Penta were unusual, as the sophomore took just her sixth loss of the season.
Penta came into the game with an ERA of 1.50. Two batters into the game, Georgia had surpassed that, with a single followed by a Sara Mosley home run.
Just two batters later, Jayda Kearney hit a solo shot. Auburn was down three before ever coming to bat.
It should come as no surprise that Georgia had success with the long ball, as the Bulldogs came into the game with 93 home runs, the most in the SEC.
In the second inning, Penta ran into more trouble after walking the leadoff hitter. After a stolen base and a throwing error by catcher Aubrie Lisenby, who hit Penta in the head with her throw to second, Mosley struck again, hitting an RBI single to make it 4-0.
After Penta was pulled with one out in the second inning, Shelby Lowe was called upon to pitch. Lowe immediately gave up an RBI single to Kearney, but settled down soon after.
Lowe went 4.2 innings, holding the Bulldogs at bay and giving Auburn the chance to come back.
"It was encouraging to see the relief performance from Shelby Lowe," Dean said.
While Lowe kept the Tigers in the game, Auburn’s bats had difficulty getting hits with consistency.
“We just weren't patient at the plate, which was the difference in today's game," Dean said.
The Tigers had just five hits in the game, and only once did they have multiple hits in an inning.
That inning was the third, when Carlee McCondichie hit a single and Lindsey Garcia followed with a double. McCondichie came home on a Nelia Peralta RBI groundout to cut the deficit to four.
The Tigers got another back when Kelsey Schmidt homered to left field in the fifth. It was a 5-2 game at that point.
In the sixth, however, Lowe made her only major mistake giving up a home run to Mosely, her second of the game, and making it 6-2. Mosley finished with four RBI’s in a game that was decided by three. All six runs for Georgia were batted in by either Mosley or Kearney.
Despite the loss, it was a special senior day for the two players Auburn honored, pitcher Samatha Yarbrough and catcher Aspyn Godwin. The ceremonial first pitch was thrown by Yarbrough and her father, and was caught by Godwin and her father.
Both seniors would make memories in the seventh inning. Yarbrough retired the side in order in the seventh inning, receiving an ovation from the capacity crowd in Auburn. In the bottom of the inning, Godwin hit a home run in what was, perhaps, her final at bat at Jane B. Moore Field.
"The efforts from Sam Yarbrough and Aspyn Godwin in the seventh inning on their senior day brought tears to my eyes,” Dean said. “I was so proud of them.”
Godwin’s homer was all the Tigers could get in the seventh, and Auburn was unable to get a sweep, though it was an important series win for the Tigers.
Though the regular-season home schedule is over, it may not be the last time softball is played at Jane B. Moore Field this season.
The Tigers added a critical series win over the Bulldogs this weekend, and have opportunities over the next two weeks to add to its resume as a potential host for a regional, beginning next weekend at Tennessee.
The series between the Tigers and Lady Vols will begin on Friday, with a start time of 5:00 p.m. CST on the SEC Network.
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Matthew is a senior from Huntsville, Alabama, majoring in journalism. He started with The Plainsman in fall 2021.
Twitter: @mattwallaceAU
