Heading into the weekend hungry, No. 13 Auburn (6-1-1) looks to extend its win streak against the Lipscomb Bisons (5-3).
Auburn’s offense had a productive night, with several of its players scoring home runs and others recording multiple hits and runs. The Tigers ended the night with 18 runs, 11 hits and three home runs. Some of Auburn’s newest additions saw action during the game.
“The offense has done some amazing stuff to allow us to throw 16 guys in a ball game. That’s to our benefit, and I give the offense credit, and for the most part, I give the defense credit,” said head coach Butch Thompson.
Justin Kirby led the Tigers’ offense with a home run, which accounted for his one run and one hit. Cole Foster got rolling, adding three runs, one hit and a home run. Following Kirby and Foster’s lead, Cooper McMurray also hit a home run.
After a rough few innings against Florida A&M, Auburn learned the changes it must make in the upcoming series against the Bisons. The first adjustment must be able to secure and cover the first base. Next, pitchers must keep the ball in the strike zone to prevent Lipscomb’s batters from walking.
“One through nine, we all have a good mindset, a good approach, and we try to be consistent and play that way every day,” said center fielder Kason Howell. “You know, hitting comes and goes, but as long as we’re sticking with who we are and what we do.”
The Tigers and the Bisons have a history, meeting six times since 2007. Auburn leads the series 4-2. The Bisons have a couple of players that, if the Tigers aren’t careful, could capitalize on every mistake and control the game.
Sophomore Trace Willhoite has eight runs, nine hits and three home runs with a .333 batting average. Junior Alex Vergara has seven runs, seven hits and two home runs with a .308 batting average. Sophomore Mason Lundgrin has five runs and nine hits with a .310 batting average.
Thompson announced that Auburn will start some of its new additions on the mound this weekend. St. John’s River State transfer Tanner Bauman will start on Friday, with Southern Union transfer Christian Herberholz on Saturday and freshman Zach Crotchfelt on Sunday.
“I’m ready to go. Thankfully before the season started, I’ve been getting some starts, so it’s gonna be a thing I’ve done before,” Bauman said. “So it’s a pretty comfortable feeling, but I’m ready to set a good tempo and hopefully get the game off to a good start.”
Joseph Gonzalez remains on injured reserve with a shoulder injury, and the timetable for his return is still unknown. Bobby Peirce’s availability for this weekend is unknown as he is dealing with a hamstring injury, but Thompson mentioned that Peirce is close to returning to action.
“This is not a long-term deal. So it is not his knees. This is the hamstring-type deal. We think it’s a strain. I don’t think there was any coloration or anything where we thought it was significant,” said Thompson. “The thing with hamstrings is you do not want it to linger. So I think he’ll try to participate in practice, and at the end of practice, we’ll know if he’s a go for tomorrow.”
The three-game series will begin on Friday at 6 p.m. CST and will be streamed on the SEC Network+.
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Caitlyn Griffin is a sophomore from Huntsville, Alabama, majoring in journalism. She started with The Plainsman in fall 2022.
Twitter: @caitlyngrif99
