Auburn’s impressive offensive performance helped take down Wichita State in seven innings Saturday afternoon as the Tigers defeated the Shockers 19-8. The win put Auburn at 6-0 on the season.
The 19 runs set the season high for Auburn with help from Cooper McMurray, Ike Irish and Bobby Peirce scoring 10 runs combined. Six batters reached base three or more times, showing how much of a team win this was for the Tigers.
“Top to bottom, everybody is contributing,” said head coach Butch Thompson. "It seemed like every inning you had Irish, McMurray and Peirce coming to the plate.”
Cooper Weiss kicked things off with a leadoff double. After two walks from Irish and Peirce, McMurray struck a grand slam at the top of the first inning, his second homer of the season. He helped drive in six runs in this game, a career high for him. McMurray’s first inning was a significant contributor to building momentum early on.
Auburn took a 5-0 lead in the top of the first after Chris Stanfield singled to right, advanced to third and scored on a balk.
“We had a late night last night and got right back out here this morning and were able to put some runs up quick and do the job,” Peirce said. “Once the game got going we clicked it into gear and were off.”
Auburn made it 7-0 at the top of the second when Peirce hit a homer sending in two runs. The Tigers set the tone early, but Wichita State would not back down as it drove in three runs in the bottom of the second after a three-run homer.
The top of the lineup for Auburn would not let Wichita State ease back into the game, as Irish and McMurray shot RBI singles to left center. Peirce drove in his third run of the game on a ground ball to second, routing Auburn to a four-run inning.
Pitching was an important contributor to Auburn’s success as well, as Joseph Gonzalez limited the Shockers in the third throwing just 12 pitches. He showed resilience after giving up a three-run homer in the second, shutting down Wichita State in the third and limiting the Shockers’ momentum going forward.
The Tigers’ incredible offense was not going anywhere, as they scored four more runs in the fourth, stretching the lead to 15-3. Cale Stricklin scored on a wild pitch, McMurray drove in his sixth run of the game on a base-loaded walk and Stanfield hit his second sacrifice fly of the game, piling up the runs for Auburn.
Auburn’s bullpen gave up three runs to the Shockers in the fifth, but the Tigers’ offense was too much for the Shockers as the Tigers scored four more runs in the sixth extending the lead to 19-6. Cade Belyeu hit a sacrifice fly to center, driving in a run earning him his first RBI of the season.
Wichita State scored runs in each of its last two at-bats, but ultimately, it was not enough to overcome as the game finished 19-8.
Everyone came to play for Auburn, and it showed on the road, as Auburn got its second double-digit win of the young season.
“The guys came out ready to play, the offense was ready to play,” Thompson said. "We were just focused every inning on our at-bats. Through five innings, that was about as good as this group has played together.”
The Tigers will look to go 3-0 in the Jax College Baseball Classic with a quick turnaround against No. 10 Virginia at 3 p.m. CST on Sunday. The game will be streamed on D1Baseball.com.
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Tyler Cox is a sophomore from Atlanta majoring in journalism. He joined The Plainsman in fall 2023.
