There is a new era coming to Jane B. Moore Field this weekend as Auburn Softball gets set to kick off their 2025 campaign on the Plains with the Tiger Invitational. The Tigers will host Southern Illinois, North Carolina and Appalachian State over the course of five games this weekend — February 7-9.
Highlighting the news from the offseason are Auburn’s new co-head coaches, Chris and Kate Malveaux, as they aim to lead the Tigers to their 20th postseason appearance. Prior to replacing former head coach Mickey Dean, the husband-and-wife duo spent their tenures at Tennessee as assistant coaches, helping lead the Lady Vols to a Women’s College World Series appearance behind their powerful offense.
"We've proven that we can build, and we can build fast. We're going to chase championships. That's what we're going to do here and that's what we expect out of our players," said Kate Malveaux.
Auburn will open the weekend with an afternoon start on Friday as they take on the Southern Illinois Salukis with the first pitch being scheduled for 3:00 P.M. CST. Led by head coach Jen Sewell, the Salukis went 44-11 in 2024 and will look to build off their strong No. 1 finish in the Missouri Valley Conference. On the contrary, the Tigers are 22-5-1 in all-time season opening games and will look to continue this positive trend.
Following Auburn’s opener, the North Carolina Tar Heels will be the next foe to visit the plains as they will face the Tigers shortly after the conclusion of the Auburn-Southern Illinois game. The Tar Heels are led by veteran head coach Megan Smith Lyon as she enters her second season in Chapel Hill, N.C. while coaching her 17th season at the D-I level.
UNC had a strong season in Lyon’s first year, but the team is full of new faces for 2025 as only eight of 20 players are returning. Auburn holds a 2-2 all-time record against the Tar Heels with its last matchup coming in the 2012 season.
Bright and early Saturday morning, the Tigers will face Appalachian State at 10:00 A.M. CST as Auburn will look to continue their good fortunes against the Mountaineers. Auburn has won five consecutive games against Appalachian State by run-rule, outscoring the Mountaineers 59-5 over the course of those contests.
Along with the Tigers, Appalachian State will headline a first-year head coach in Whitney Jones as she will not only record her first season in Boone, NC, but also anywhere in the NCAA as a head coach. The Mountaineers had a very frustrating season in 2024 as the team went 21-30 with a 4-20 record in the Sun Belt Conference, but Jones will look to turn this around.
Auburn will wrap up the weekend by facing Southern Illinois and North Carolina in rematches as the Southern Illinois matchup will follow the Appalachian State game Saturday early afternoon, and UNC will conclude the Tigers weekend on Sunday with first pitch at 11:30 A.M. CST.
Games being played on Friday and Sunday will be televised on SEC Network+ while all games will be available to listen to on WEGL 91.1 FM and Auburn Sports Network.
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Will is a freshman majoring in journalism. He started with The Plainsman in the spring of 2025.
You can follow him on X (Twitter) at @willdembo
