No. 5 Auburn baseball saw its streak of six straight SEC series wins come to an end Friday night, dropping its second straight game to No. 4 Georgia 9-7.
Unlike Thursday night’s pitching duel, which Georgia won 2-1, Friday’s matchup saw both teams’ bats catch fire, as the teams combined for 16 runs on 23 hits.
“They outpitched us for two days,” Auburn coach Butch Thompson said. “Their offense absolutely showed up today. The two three-run homers were too much to overcome tonight. We’re competing our hearts out. LJ Cormier was absolutely tremendous. The spirit’s there, the effort’s there. We’ve got to keep working.”
After quickly falling behind 5-0 in the top of the first inning, Auburn attempted two valiant comebacks, cutting the deficit to just two runs in the fifth and seventh innings, but to no avail.
The Tigers will now look to salvage the series in their final regular-season game of the year Saturday, hoping to avoid a sweep against the Bulldogs and keep their losing streak at just three games.
After recording two early outs in the top of the first, the Bulldogs put together a series of clutch at-bats to go up big early. Georgia plated five runs in the inning off a two-run single by second baseman Ryan Wynn and a three-run home run by designated hitter Jordy Oriach.
Auburn halted the momentum, putting up two runs of its own in the bottom half of the inning thanks to a two-out, two-run single from freshman first baseman Ethin Bingaman. Both Andreas Alvarez and Bulldogs starter Dylan Vigue settled back in. However, each tossed three straight scoreless innings from there.
The bats came alive in the fifth inning for both squads. Georgia plated three more runs to go up by six after another three-run homer from shortstop Kolby Branch.
The Tigers answered back instantly in the bottom of the fifth, seeing 10 players come up to bat in the inning. Second baseman Chris Rembert recorded a two-out RBI on his second double of the game.
During the next at-bat, Bingaman drove in his third and fourth runs of the game on a single to center field. After a walk and a hit by pitch to load the bases, Tigers center fielder Cade Belyeu hustled out an infield single to drive in the Tigers’ fourth run of the inning.
The Tigers were unable to put up any additional scoring, however, stranding the tying and go-ahead runs on base to end the inning.
Auburn reliever LJ Cormier kept the Tigers in the game, providing the squad with 4.2 innings of one-run ball, the lone run coming on a solo shot from Georgia center fielder Rylan Lujo in the sixth. Auburn did not take advantage of the performance, scoring just one more run in the game, a solo home run from left fielder Bub Terrell. The Tigers lost the game 9-7, earning their first series loss in six weeks.
AUBURN, AL - MAY 15 - Auburn's Bub Terrell (19) - (4) Auburn Tigers vs. (5) Georgia Bulldogs at Plainsman Park in Auburn, AL on Friday, May 15, 2026. Photo by Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers
The Tigers will be looking to avoid the sweep Saturday as they host the Bulldogs in their final SEC game of the regular season.
First pitch in the regular season finale is set for 2 p.m. CDT on ESPN+.
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Jonathan is a freshman majoring in industrial and systems engineering. He started with The Plainsman in the fall of 2025.
