For the second straight season, Auburn baseball will host a regional at Plainsman Park. The Tigers were awarded the No. 13 national seed by the NCAA selection committee, chaired by Auburn athletics director John Cohen.
The 2023 tournament will mark Auburn’s 24th appearance in the event, and fifth under head coach Butch Thompson. It will be the sixth time Auburn has hosted a regional, and the second under Thompson, joining the seasons of 1978, 1999, 2003, 2010 and 2022.
Joining the Tigers at Plainsman Park will be Southern Miss, Samford and Penn. Auburn will open play against the Quakers, which had a record of 32-14 and won the Ivy League championship.
The Golden Eagles and Bulldogs will square off to open the double-elimination regional. Southern Miss had a record of 41-17 and won the Sun Belt Tournament, while Samford had a record of 36-23 and won the Southern Conference title.
Auburn defeated Samford 13-3 in the lone meeting between the teams this season.
Auburn has won three straight regionals in which it participated — the 2018 Raleigh Regional, 2019 Atlanta Regional and 2022 Auburn Regional.
Auburn was one of eight SEC programs selected to host a regional — joining Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, LSU, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. Auburn went 6-11 against regional hosts this season, with series wins over LSU and South Carolina. In total, 10 SEC teams qualified for the tournament.
The winner of the Auburn Regional will face off against the winner of the Clemson Regional, hosted by the No. 4 national seed Clemson, in the Super Regionals. Regional play begins on Friday, June 2.
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
Matthew is a senior from Huntsville, Alabama, majoring in journalism. He started with The Plainsman in fall 2021.
Twitter: @mattwallaceAU
