No. 15 Auburn was unable to overcome an early deficit against Kentucky on Saturday night, falling to the Wildcats 5-4 in game two to even the series.
The Tigers drop to 23-11 overall and 7-7 in conference play, and the outcome marks their fourth consecutive game-two loss — previously losing the second matchup of the series to Texas, Alabama, and Arkansas.
“I thought the Arkansas series and, so far, these two games, I can’t ask for a more competitive spirit from our guys,” head coach Butch Thompson said. “And they gave us that again tonight, even though we came up a run short.”
Kentucky wasted no time at the plate kickstarting its offense, as Tyler Bell led off the game with a home run to right field to put the Wildcats on the board first. Following an Auburn fielding error and a single in the next two at-bats, Jayce Tharnish laced a triple down the right field line to make it 3-0 in the top of the first.
After Auburn ace Jake Marciano threw 31 pitches in the fifth frame alone, the Wildcats didn’t slow down in the second, blasting back-to-back homers over the green monster in left field to extend their lead to 5-0. Kentucky didn’t score again after the second inning.
Marciano entered the night ranked second in the conference in ERA (1.29), but it was a much different story on Saturday, as the sophomore surrendered five runs on eight hits through four innings of work. He also recorded seven strikeouts on the night.
Marcel Kulik took over in relief in the top of the fifth, tossing 1 ⅓ innings and only allowing two hits. Junior lefty Garrett Brewer entered the game in the sixth, during which Kentucky had the bases loaded, but he escaped the inning without damage after a pair of strikeouts ended the scoring threat.
Brewer was certainly Auburn’s main bright spot from the loss, finishing with six strikeouts and allowing just two hits through 3 ⅔ innings. He undoubtedly gave the Tigers a chance to win, but the offense came up short in crucial situations.
“Garrett Brewer was a star tonight. That was huge for him,” Thompson said. “In the last three weeks, he’s been, not in the wilderness, but trying to fight to get back on track. And I give him a ton of credit as the player, and I give (pitching coach) Everett Teaford a ton of credit.”
“Felt good. They had trusted me. I went out there and just did my job and had to throw strikes and get outs. So, felt good,” Brewer said.
As Auburn’s arms held Kentucky scoreless through the final seven innings, the Tigers’ offense slowly chipped away at the five-run deficit, posting one run in the fourth, two in the fifth and one more in the sixth.
However, missed opportunities at the plate haunted Thompson’s squad, as it left the bases juiced in the fourth inning and stranded runners on second and third base in the sixth.
In the sixth, specifically, Auburn loaded the bases with just one out with Eric Guevara and Bub Terrell due up next. Guevara struck out swinging on a wild pitch that got away from the catcher, which scored Brandon McCraine from third, but Terrell followed with a foul out to end the inning.
Auburn totaled 11 runners left on base, and it was just 2-for-12 (.167) with runners in scoring position.
In the bottom of the ninth, the Tigers showed glimpses of a rally, as they were trailing by just one run. Terrell was hit by a pitch after Guevara reached on an infield single, making it first and second with only one out in the final frame.
However, two consecutive flyouts from Chris Rembert and Lucas Steele concluded the contest.
Auburn will face Kentucky at 2 p.m. CDT on Sunday at Plainsman Park for the series, and it will be broadcast on SEC Network.
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Gunner is a sophomore majoring in journalism. He started with The Plainsman in the fall 2024.
You can follow him on X (Twitter) at @norene_gunner10
