Tigers bounce back with midweek victory over Jacksonville State

Following its three-game sweep last weekend at No. 6 Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma, Auburn softball bounced back on a chilly Wednesday night at Jane B. Moore Field, defeating Jacksonville State 10-3.

The Tigers move to 21-10 overall on the year, and the victory marks the 10th win for co-head coaches Kate and Chris Malveaux against in-state opponents since they arrived on the Plains.

“That was a big thing. We can’t carry that with us,” Chris Malveaux said on his team’s response to the Oklahoma series. “We’ve got to make sure that we were able to rebound and take care of business this week.”

Jacksonville State, which entered the night at a solid 20-8 overall record and 5-1 in Conference-USA, came out firing in the first frame.

Auburn starting pitcher Ella Harrison retired two of the first three Jacksonville State, but the Gamecocks capitalized on a two-out walk, as a pair of singles from Amber Reed and Ashley Phillips drove in two runs to get the visitors on the board first.

However, Auburn responded with authority in the bottom of the first, scoring four runs to take a 4-2 lead after the opening stanza.

Jacksonville State starting pitcher MacKinley Portillo struggled heavily from the opening pitch, walking the first two Auburn batters and missing the zone on eight of her first 10 pitches. Portillo threw 27 pitches before recording an out, and only saw one inning of work, as reliever Yulai Woodruff took over in the second.

After Kylie Shaw and Alyssa Hastings earned free passes, senior right fielder McKaela Walker hammered a double on the 13th pitch of the at-bat to score Shaw. A couple of batters later, junior Ma’Nia Womack blasted a 3-run home run to put the Tigers up two after one inning of action.

Walker finished the game 3-for-4 at the plate with five RBIs, later blasting a grand slam in the bottom of the sixth for her 10th home run of the year.

The middle innings were slightly quieter, as South Alabama posted one more run in the third, and Auburn recorded a run in both the third and fourth innings.

However, the Tigers broke it open in the home-half of the sixth, as Auburn loaded the bases before Walker made it 10-3 with her grand slam to left field.

“Honestly, I’m just trying to get runs in for my team, and at that at-bat, I was trying to hit the ball hard,” Walker said on her grand slam. “I’ve actually faced that girl (Woodruff) plenty of times in travel ball and high school and everything. So, I’ve seen her a couple times before.

Following the Gamecocks’ two-run opening frame, Harrison eventually settled in, pitching all 7.0 innings and recording five strikeouts. The sophomore allowed three runs — and just two earned — on six hits.

Preparing for its annual SEC bye weekend, Auburn is slated to face Florida A&M on Monday and South Alabama next Wednesday before hosting Missouri next weekend — all at Jane B. Moore Field.