No. 6 Auburn baseball is set to take on its first opponent in the SEC Tournament on Wednesday night, facing LSU. In the first round, LSU beat Oklahoma 6-2 in an upset win.
Auburn is coming off its longest layoff between games this season, having not played since its regular-season finale against No. 4 Georgia last Saturday. While the time off gives the Tigers more rest and preparation time, it could also put them at a disadvantage against a team coming off a momentum-shifting victory the day prior.
LSU had a rough time in conference play this year, finishing with a 9-21 record against SEC opponents and suffering a nine-game losing streak in the process. Taking on Oklahoma on Tuesday, however, the squad secured an impressive underdog win to advance to the second round of the tournament.
After falling behind 2-1 to the Sooners through the first four innings, LSU put up five unanswered runs to secure a comfortable four-run victory. Not only did LSU’s victory provide a great deal of positive momentum heading into Wednesday’s matchup, but the squad was able to do so without burning one of its starting pitchers, having used just three relievers for all nine innings Tuesday.
This will be the first time the two Tiger squads have matched up this season, but as far as regular-season success goes, Auburn outduels LSU handily. After winning six of its last seven conference series, including impressive wins against Arkansas and Texas A&M, Auburn finished conference play with a 17-13 record.
While Auburn’s offense finished the season with the fourth-best batting average in the conference (.299), LSU was not too far behind with the eighth-ranked SEC offense (.284). What really separates the squads is the discrepancy between the pitching staffs. While Auburn’s 3.60 ERA was the top mark in the SEC by more than half a run, LSU finished dead last in the conference in the stat, sitting at a 5.78 ERA on the year.
Auburn’s elite starting quartet of Jake Marciano (2.74), Andreas Alvarez (3.54), Jackson Sanders (2.79) and Alex Petrovic (3.38) has been a key factor in the team’s dominant season on the mound. Marciano and Sanders both finished inside the top five in player ERA in the conference, with Sanders taking home All-SEC Second Team honors in the process.
Auburn’s offense will be the key to this SEC Tournament matchup. Coming off a dominant 14 runs scored in its final regular-season game, the squad will be looking to stay hot and take advantage of what has been a struggling LSU pitching staff. If Auburn hopes to make just its seventh-ever appearance in the College World Series, its first since 2022, the Tigers will be hoping to go on a run in this year’s SEC Tournament.
Make sure to catch your Tigers tonight at 8 p.m. CDT as they kick off their first game of the SEC Tournament against LSU. The game will be available on SEC Network.
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Jonathan is a freshman majoring in industrial and systems engineering. He started with The Plainsman in the fall of 2025.
