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(03/07/14 8:45pm)
Believe it or not, we're already in the month of March, which not only means spring break is next week, but also means the most wonderful time of the year is quickly approaching: NCAA Basketball March Madness.
It's almost time to fill out those brackets that we all know and love. Well, you like it until you rip them up after your picks are completely wrong by the end of the first weekend.
I know the Auburn Tigers, unfortunately, will not be a part of the field of 68 teams who will be picked to make the tournament on Selection Sunday March 16. Well, unless they win the SEC Tournament in Atlanta.
But this tournament gives everyone an opportunity to not only watch exciting games filled with potential upsets during the next few weeks, but also the opportunity to win $1 billion.
You read that correctly: one billion dollars.
Quicken Loans Inc. announced in January that they were going to team up with Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. on this Billion Dollar Bracket Challenge.
If you won this challenge, you would choose to receive either 40 annual installments of $25 million or receive an immediate $500 million lump-sum payment.
If there are no perfect brackets Quicken will award $100,000 each to the contest's 20 most accurate brackets.
According to CNN, Buffett will attend the national championship game if there's a chance you have a perfect bracket going down to the final game.
"I will invite him or her to be my guest at the final game and be there with a check in my pocket, but I will not be cheering for him or her to win," Buffett said to CNN. "I may even give them a little investment advice."
Even if you do not care for college basketball, you might as well give it a shot. Every college student could use an extra few bucks or a billion dollars works too.
This year's NCAA Tournament is different though.
There is not one dominant favorite to win it all or even a team that is a lock-in to make the final four, which makes filling out your bracket even harder this year.
Just when I thought Syracuse was a lock to make the Final Four, they go and lose to an 8-21 Boston College team at home to break their undefeated season.
Maybe you're thinking Wichita State will make it to the Final Four since they are the only undefeated team left winning all 31 of their regular season games. But their strength of schedule is anything but impressive, so who knows what will happen when they face a team from a top conference.
Kentucky, a team that was expected by some to make a run in the tournament, lost last week to South Carolina, who has the worst record in the SEC, being 11-18 overall.
Maybe No. 1 Florida will win it all since their last loss dates all the way back to Dec. 2. But they haven't exactly been dominant, as most of their wins in a shaky SEC have been close games.
With the amount of upsets and court storming that has occurred already this season, don't be surprised to see another 15-seed make the Sweet 16 like Florida Gulf Coast did last March. If that happens again you might as well put your bracket through the paper shredder.
There only happens to be nine quintillion ways to fill out a bracket, so if any of you find the ridiculous amount of time it would take to fill out every possible combination, maybe you'll get the chance to watch the Final Four next to Warren Buffett in hopes of winning that billion.
Even if it's nearly impossible to fill out a perfect bracket, take the time this March to sit back and enjoy the madness that will add to the unpredictable season college basketball has already had.
Good luck filling out those brackets. We will need all the luck we can get if we want to win that money.
(03/02/14 11:28pm)
After a ninth-inning rally that came up short Friday night, Auburn carried that momentum over to Saturday in a one-hitter and Sunday in a 12-5 victory with 14 hits to win the series over Presbyterian.
Senior pitcher Jay Wade earned the win in 4.1 relief innings while only allowing two hits and no runs.
"He was terrific," said Auburn head coach Sunny Golloway. "Jay is kind of an unsung hero of our pitching staff. He's a grinder and when we call on him to do it, he'll do it for us. He came out of the bullpen, stepped up and pitched."
Auburn started the game off shaky when starting pitcher Trey Wingenter did not get out of the first inning.
Wingenter, who only pitched one inning this season prior to this start, gave up an RBI single to Presbyterian's Cam McRae. After he hit Nate Chong to load up the bases, right-hander Michael O'Neal took over on the mound for Auburn and managed to get out of the bases-loaded jam to end the inning.
Auburn's bats responded in the bottom of the first with a three-run home run over the left field Green Monster by Damek Tomscha. Tomscha's homer was the first one for Auburn this season.
In the following inning, Anfernee Grier continued his 11-game hitting streak with an RBI single to score Ryan Tella and make it 4-1.
Presbyterian earned their second run with a base hit RBI by Jacob Midkiff in the top of the third, but that inning ended with a bases-loaded groundout.
Tella, who went 3-for-3 on the day, hit an RBI single to make it 5-2, which also caused Presbyterian's first pitching change in the bottom of the third.
The top of the fourth was a rough one for O'Neal as Presbyterian tied it up 5-5.
After two singles put runners on first and second, O'Neal had a wild throw trying to pick off the runner at first, which scored Brandon Martin from second. Then McRae hit another RBI single to make it 5-4. The next batter, Brandon Paul, tied the score with an RBI double. Wade then replaced O'Neal.
Wade kept Presbyterian scoreless for the next four innings he pitched. Wade also had three consecutive 1-2-3 innings and did not allow a hit until the 11th batter that he faced.
Auburn scored a run in every inning besides the bottom of the eighth.
After Presbyterian tied the game in the fourth, Auburn's bats responded well starting with a double off the left field wall by Dan Glevenyak. A balk scored Grier and then Tomscha hit an RBI single to drive in Glevenyak and take the 7-5 lead.
Auburn put up their next two runs in the bottom of the fifth with Tella scoring off of a fielder's choice and Grier hitting another RBI to score Jordan Ebert.
For the third consecutive inning, Auburn put up two runs thanks to a sacrifice fly RBI by Tella and an RBI single by Ebert to make it 11-5. Grier scored their final run off of a Blake Logan groundout.
Trey Cochran-Gill kept the score at 12-5 as he successfully closed out the game in the ninth.
"We played all of our position guys today and everyone was hooked up and into the game," Golloway said. "I see a baseball team that's getting better, we've got a long ways to go."
Auburn's next game is against Alabama this Tuesday at 7 p.m. in Montgomery at Riverwalk Stadium in the annual MAX Capital City Classic between the two rivals.
"We're excited," Golloway said. "It's going to be a great learning experience for our young club."
(03/02/14 12:09am)
Auburn bounced back in game two in the Presbyterian series Saturday with a 3-0 win under the command of freshman Keegan Thompson, who pitched the first one-hitter for the Tigers since 2002.
"I felt pretty good today," Thompson said. "We had a good plan going in with their hitters. I missed a couple times, but our defense played behind me."
During the first three innings, Auburn continued to struggle with leaving runners on base and did not give Thompson the run support he needed.
But in the bottom of the fourth, Damek Tomscha put Auburn on the board with a base hit RBI single to score Ryan Tella, who reached on a walk and stole second.
Thompson did not allow a hit until the fifth inning when Presbyterian's Brandon Paul hit a double that right fielder Anfernee Grier almost caught on a dive. Thompson bounced back with two consecutive outs to maintain Auburn's 1-0 lead.
In the bottom of the fifth, Auburn started with a one-out standup double by Grier, who went 2-for-3 to extend his hitting streak to 10 games.
In the top of the sixth Thompson pitched his fourth 1-2-3 inning of the day.
Auburn gave Thompson two insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth.
Tomscha started the rally with a single, and Daniel Robert advanced him to third with a successful hit and run single.
With runners on the corners, freshman Connor Short hit an RBI single to score Tomscha and take the 2-0 lead.
Short's clutch hit also caused the first pitching change of the day when Brian Kehner replaced Chandler Knox on the mound for Presbyterian.
After the pitching change, pinch hitter Jordan Ebert hit a pop up to the first baseman. In Damon Haecker's at-bat, Auburn converted a double steal to score Daniel Robert. Auburn went scoreless in their last two at bats but finished the day with 10 hits.
Thompson continued to deal on the mound with a five pitch 1-2-3 seventh inning, another 1-2-3 inning in the eighth and then a scoreless ninth to complete the shutout.
Thompson did not walk a single batter, and Presbyterian only got three runners on base all day, reaching on one hit and two errors.
Auburn hopes to win the series against Presbyterian tomorrow at 1 p.m.
"I want to compliment our fans," Golloway said. "If we started this year 9-1 or 8-2 or 10-0, I wouldn't have recognized how special our fans are. It took a 5-5 start to recognize how special our fans are here."
(03/01/14 4:16am)
Despite having 14 hits, the most they have had so far in a game this season, Auburn baseball had trouble leaving runners on base and let up 17 hits to Presbyterian in a 10-6 loss.
Presbyterian's bats came to work early with a single and double to the left field fence in the first inning. Those hits were followed by an error by Auburn shortstop Dan Glevenyak which gave Presbyterian the 2-0 lead.
Auburn responded with three hits of their own in the first, including a double by Damek Tomscha to score Anfernee Grier, who got on base with a single extending his current hitting streak to nine games.
But that one run was all Auburn would get until the bottom of the ninth, not because of the lack of hits, but the amount of runners being left on base.
The third inning was a tough one for Auburn in the field. Dillon Ortman allowed two singles and a walk to load up the bases with one out. Then Jacob Midkiff hit a two-RBI single to make the score 4-1. Midkiff went 5-for-5 on the night with three RBIs.
Presbyterian followed up with a double steal, which caused Auburn's defense problems, and then another base hit RBI by Billy Motroni to make it 6-1.
"We threw the ball home when we should've thrown it to second to get out of the inning," head coach Sunny Golloway said. "That (inning) turned into a little bit of a circus and I don't like seeing circuses on the baseball field, especially when I'm in charge."
In the fourth inning, Golloway subbed out Damek Tomscha at third base and moved Blake Austin to play third. Austin was then subbed out a few innings later for the same reason as Tomscha, which was striking out on called three strikes.
"When you're behind 6-1 or 7-1, a called three strike is not going to work for us. If you're going to fight, fight and swing the bat. You give yourself no chance when you take a called three strike. When you swing the bat you give your team a chance."
Auburn came out swinging in the ninth inning, but it turned out to be too little, too late.
Ryan Tella started the inning off with his second double of the night and then Damon Haecker and Grier reached on walks. Two consecutive RBIs made it 10-3. Then following a pitching change Keegan Thompson responded with another RBI single to make it 10-4. Pinch hitter Jackson Burgreen kept the inning alive with another base hit RBI to add the fifth run for Auburn. A wild pitch made it 10-6. With the bases loaded, two outs and the tying runner up to bat, Auburn's rally came up short when Haecker popped the ball up to end the game.
"For a team to be down 10-1, embarrassed at home, to show that kind of fight. There was a lot of character and I'm pleased to see that kind of character. They're truly disappointed and they should be," Golloway said.
Auburn hopes to carry that ninth inning over to game two of tomorrow's home series against Presbyterian at 3 p.m.
(03/01/14 1:10am)
After several of his former assistants left their analyst jobs to take larger responsbilities at other schools, Gus Malzahn is reloading his support staff for a potential SEC title defense.
For one of the vacant spots left on the football coaching staff, Malzahn turned to hiring a successful high school coach, Bobby Bentley, to be the new offensive analyst working strictly with quarterbacks.
Malzahn also hired Travis Williams, former Auburn linebacker and graduate assistant, to become a defensive analyst on Tuesday, Feb. 25.
Williams will reportedly have an off-field role focusing on defensive analysis. Williams is from Columbia, S.C. and played linebacker at Auburn from 2001-2005.
"I'm excited to be back," Williams told AL.com. "Coming back home and being on a great coaching staff is something I couldn't turn down."
Many Auburn fans may be familiar with his 80-tackle campaign during the undefeated 2004 season, which earned him a spot on the All-SEC first team.
Other fans will remember him for the multiple rap songs he wrote while on the Plains, including "Tiger Walk," which has been a favorite at Jordan-Hare Stadium in recent seasons.
After his collegiate playing days, Williams went on to play in the NFL from 2006-2008 and appeared in six games for the Atlanta Falcons.
After his short career in the NFL came to a close, Williams returned to the Plains as a defensive graduate assistant under former head coach Gene Chizik.
Williams was still an assistant during the 2010 National Championship season, but moved on from Auburn in the spring of 2012 to become a linebackers coach at Northern Iowa.
Malzahn filled another support staff spot on the other side of the ball this week, with the hiring of quarterbacks offensive analyst Bentley.
"It will be an honor to work with the SEC champions and work alongside Coach Gus Malzahn," Bentley said to the Spartanburg Herald Journal.
Bentley was the Byrnes High School (S.C.) football coach and assistant athletic director last season, and he led his team to a 12-2 record, a regional title and a state semifinal berth.
Bentley also modeled his high school's offense last season after Malzahn's hurry-up no-huddle offense.
After taking over in 2013 for Chris Miller, who won three state titles as head coach at Byrnes and then took a different coaching job in South Carolina, Bentley moved from offensive coordinator to head coach.
Bentley's son, Jake, is a rising sophomore in high school and was offered a football scholarship to play at Auburn University in June of 2013 before his freshman year.
Jake, a 6-foot-4, 207-pound quarterback, was expected to be the starting quarterback at Byrnes for his last three seasons and already has other scholarship offers from schools, including Clemson University.
Bentley was the Byrnes head coach from 1995-2006 with an overall record of 107-52. From 2002-2005, Byrnes won four consecutive state championships, and Bentley led them to a 57-2 record during that time period.
Bentley was also the head coach at Presbyterian College from 2007-2008 and was 10-13 in those two seasons.
He then returned to coaching at the high school level at Byrnes.
Bentley spent 22 years coaching and teaching at Byrnes High School.
"I had no intentions of leaving Byrnes once I came back [from Presbyterian College]," Bentley said. "We had been to a college, and it is a little different. What happens is you meet a guy like Gus Malzahn and, you say, if you get the chance to work with him, then you do it.
"My wife is excited about it, and anytime your wife is excited it's usually a good sign."
According to GoUpstate.com, Bentley broke the news that he was taking the job at Auburn University to his high school team on Monday Feb. 24.
"I think the older ones could see it all fall into place," Bentley said. "We went to Auburn's 7-on-7, and they knew I was friends with Gus Malzahn. I think it's harder on the younger guys."
Bentley has known Malzahn for many years and turned down an offer to join Malzahn's Auburn coaching staff prior to last year's SEC Championship season, the Spartanburg Herald Journal reported.
"I think it's very important the fact that I've been a high school coach, and I got this opportunity to try to give other people more opportunities," Malzahn said. "Hopefully that'll be a trend in the future."
(02/25/14 1:20am)
A couple of weeks into the season, Auburn baseball's roster has been downsized three positions.
"We're going to have to continue to push the elements, and ultimately we'll win the battle," head coach Sunny Golloway said after a rough 5-0 loss to California Feb. 22. "I don't want it to take all year, but if we've got to minimize our roster then we'll do that."
Golloway announced Monday, Feb. 24, that seniors Hunter Kelley and Patrick Savage and junior Chase Williamson are no longer members of the Auburn baseball team. Philip Marshall from AuburnTigers.com reported that Kelley was dismissed from the team hours after the ETSU game and then Savage and Williamson left the team.
"If we're going to end up having some cancer in our clubhouse we're going to end up having to cut that out and move forward," Golloway said after the 3-2 extra innings loss to East Tennessee State Feb. 23.
The baseball team is now moving forward without three veteran players.
Kelley played a few innings in left field and Savage started at designated hitter in Sunday's 3-2 extra innings loss against ETSU, which featured many mistakes that cost the Tigers runs throughout the game.
Golloway was upset in the postgame interview Feb. 23 and pointed out Kelley's mistake in left field that turned a single into a triple to set up the winning run in the 10th inning.
"You can't dive for a single and turn it into a triple in a tie ballgame. That's just a cardinal rule and again it's a returning veteran player that does that," Golloway said. "That's disheartening because they wouldn't have scored with two more pop ups after it with our closer in the game."
Golloway also noted after the game how he has been impressed with the freshmen class' attitude and effort but has seen a "lack of work ethic and a lack of team-first" attitude from some of the returning veteran players.
Looking back at Kelley's career playing outfield for Auburn, he played his junior year here last season after transferring from junior college and batted .246 with 28 hits and nine runs batted in. Kelley was also drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 34th round in 2011.
Another senior, Savage, had a longer career at Auburn having been here since his 2010 freshman season, when he hit .333 in nine games with two doubles and one home run. After receiving a medical redshirt in 2011, he hit .260 with five home runs and 15 RBIs in 2012. Last year Savage started at designated hitter in 34 games and hit .290 on the season with 40 hits and 19 RBIs.
In Williamson's freshman year in 2012 he went 0-0 with a 2.70 ERA in four relief appearances. He saw more action on the mound last season and went 3-0 with a 3.46 ERA in 15 relief appearances.
Now that Golloway's team is moving forward without these three players, he said he is confident that things will change.
"Players have to understand that we are a part of something that is much greater than we are individually. We are going to play for what is on the front of our jerseys and not on the back," Golloway said. "Be proud of your name, but play for Auburn."
(02/24/14 12:07am)
Auburn's offensive scoring struggles continued in their 3-2 loss to East Tennessee State Sunday, which means they went 1-2 in their own Tiger Classic this weekend.
The Tigers had some missed scoring opportunities early with failed sacrifice bunt attempts and a crucial base-running mistake.
Auburn's two runs came in the bottom of the fourth, when Blake Logan hit a two-RBI double to score both Jackson Burgreen and Blake Austin.
Freshman pitcher Keegan Thompson shined again on the mound but finished with a no decision due to the lack of run support.
After the first inning, Thompson threw five consecutive 1-2-3 innings. He only threw 54 pitches through his first six innings.
In the top of the seventh, ETSU's Clinton Freeman led off with a single, and a wild pitch advanced him to second. Another single and sacrifice fly followed to score Freeman and make it 2-1.
That score remained the same until the top of the ninth, when Thompson was still on the mound.
The inning started with a two-base error, which advanced Jeremy Taylor to second with no outs. A sacrifice bunt got him to third base, and Thompson switched to play first base as Terrance Dedrick came in for the save.
Dedrick's first batter that he faced, Freeman, hit a single up the middle to tie it up and send it to extra innings.
ETSU's second batter of the 10th inning, Chris Cook, hit a triple and then ended up scoring the winning run because of a sacrifice fly.
Auburn's last three batters as Dedrick got the loss on the mound.
"I'm really disappointed in just the breakdown in fundamentals," head coach Sunny Golloway said. "We'll be a work in progress, we'll get it fixed. It's going to take a lot of hard work and sleepless nights."
(02/23/14 4:00am)
Even though Auburn only had one less hit than California, they left 13 runners on base, which helped them get shut out 5-0 in their second game of the Tiger Classic Feb. 22.
"We left seven guys stranded in the first three innings," head coach Sunny Golloway said. "We did a good job getting them on but we're definitely not having any clutch hits and that has hurt us."
Their lack of scoring troubles started in the bottom of the first. Dan Glevenyak started the inning with a single to right field and Ryan Tella followed with an infield single. After a sacrifice fly and a walk the bases were loaded but the rally ended when Keegan Thompson hit a pop up to the centerfielder.
California's first run came in the second when Mitchell Kranson hit an RBI single to score Robbie Tenerowicz.
In the following inning Auburn had runners on first and second with one out and Anfernee Grier smashed a line drive on a hit and run play and the right fielder made a nice catch and converted the double play at second since Patrick Savage was already rounding third base.
Glevenyak led off the third with a double to the green monster. Then Auburn recorded two consecutive outs and Thompson hit a single to left field but Glevenyak was thrown out at home.
Auburn pitcher Michael O'Neal had a solid night on the mound but his offense did not give him any run support for the second time this season. O'Neal only allowed one hit in his first five innings but in the sixth inning California had three hits and he walked in a run.
Jacob Milliman then came in with the bases loaded and started strong with a strikeout but then Brenden Farney hit a two-RBI single to make it 4-0. Reid Carter finished off the inning. After Carter started the seventh inning walking the first batter he faced, Daniel Koger came in to pitch. California's final run of the game came in the seventh off of an RBI single.
In the bottom of the seventh Auburn had a hit by Damon Haecker and Anfernee Grier advanced on an error. They eventually reached second and third but Auburn continued to not score with a two-out fly ball by Tella to end the inning.
Auburn did not have any offensive production in their last two innings.
Golloway said there will be major changes to the lineup starting tomorrow at 2 p.m. vs. ETSU.
"We had several returning guys hit deep fly balls and I'm seeing them smiling in the dugout being down 4-0 and 5-0. I've never seen that, I've never allowed it and I feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone," Golloway said. "When we try to get onto them and explain that's not winning baseball they look at us like we've got three heads. Let's get some new blood in there and some guys that don't have bad habits or don't have losing ways."
Golloway hinted after the game that J.J. Shaffer would start at centerfield, Blake Austin would move from catcher to third base and Blake Logan would be catcher tomorrow.
(02/22/14 3:18am)
Senior starting pitcher Dillon Ortman picked up his second win of the year with a career-high 11-strikeout performance to earn Auburn baseball a 2-1 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
"My goal coming into to it wasn't 11 K's," Ortman said "It was to get first pitch strikes and get quick outs."
Although Ortman had a career night on the mound, the Tigers continued to struggle on offense with only three hits.
The first three innings were 1-2-3 innings between both teams.
Then, in the bottom of the fourth, Anfernee Grier led off with a single up the middle. Grier is the only Auburn player to have a hit in all five games this season.
Grier then went for the steal and was initially called out but Auburn head coach Sunny Golloway and other umpires saw otherwise and the call was overturned. Dan Glevenyak then reached second on a throwing error by the third baseman, which scored Grier.
The fifth and sixth were also 1-2-3 innings for both teams.
In the bottom of the seventh, Dan Glevenyak started with a single up the middle and Ryan Tella advanced him with a sacrifice bunt. Keegan Thompson then drove in Glevenyak with an RBI single.
Arkansas-Pine Bluff's lone run came in the eighth when Kirby Campbell hit an RBI single to score Mike Wieland. Ortman then got into a jam with runners on first and third and a full count.
Ortman responded by throwing a breaking ball to strike out the batter and end the inning.
"That felt great," Ortman said. "I heard Coach Golloway say go get this guy this is your guy and I got him."
Terrance Dedrick came on to close it and earned the save with three consecutive strikeouts while blowing fastballs past each hitter.
"We can flat play defense. If we pitch and we play defense we'll be in every game," Golloway said. "The hitting will come."
Auburn's next game in the Tiger Classic is tomorrow against California at 6 p.m.
(02/20/14 8:00pm)
Having a new head coach, higher expectations and adjusting to an unfamiliar system this season are not the only new aspects of this year's Auburn baseball team.
Plainsman Park also underwent many new renovations before this season.
"We want to be the best player development facility in the country," head coach Sunny Golloway said. "It's all about development, and then we'll have the best coaches to develop that talent."
Auburn baseball recently unveiled the additions of a new bullpen, upgraded hitting facility and a new locker room that has several state-of-the-art features.
The locker room is completely renovated and feels like an MLB locker room with flat-screen televisions, cubbies marked by each player's number where they hold clean clothes for every practice and game, hot and cold hydrotherapy tubs, and a new room filled with everything the trainers need to keep the players healthy.
The Green Monster in left field added a hole, now bullpen pitchers will be able to watch the game as it's going on.
"It's really nice how we cleaned it up and made it more desirable to be in there," Golloway said.
Students who were in attendance at the open house Tuesday, Feb. 18, toured the new facilities and are looking forward to this baseball season for multiple reasons.
"I think the new renovations will have a huge impact on the future of the program, especially with recruitment," said Brad Hosking, sophomore in supply-chain management. "With the new coach and impressive additions to the park and roster, I think there is a lot more to be excited about for this season than last."
Steven Benton, sophomore in aviation management, has been going to Auburn games at Plainsman Park since he was eight years old and is excited for what could be in store this season.
"I can see home attendance increasing this year since Auburn has a new coach who seems to have the same attitude as Gus Malzahn saying, 'It's a new day,'" Benton said. "This kind of mindset will bring baseball fans from around the state to catch a few ball games this season."
Although the baseball facilities went through numerous renovations in the offseason, Golloway is ready for more additions in the future.
"Hopefully, if President Gogue will stay hooked up with me and agree, we're going to get us a practice field somewhere between [Hitchcock Field] and the new dorms," Golloway said.
Golloway said he hopes to bring the seats all the way down to the field level and pull the dugouts out farther and make them deeper.
Golloway said he knows they need to build camera wells since they will be on television alot with the new SEC ESPN Network launching this summer.
Another future renovation that Gollway is considering is the addition of six rows of seats above the Green Monster in left field and refer to it as the "Eagle's Nest."
"We'd like to go ahead and get the seats above it just like Fenway," Golloway said. "Those would be very desirable seats; six rows on top of the big Green Monster to watch the ballgame."
(02/20/14 1:57am)
In a highly anticipated opening day for Auburn baseball, Alabama State stunned the crowd of more than 3,500 fans as they cruised to a 9-3 victory with six different pitchers, which is their first win over Auburn in eight tries.
"It will definitely be a memorable experience for a home debut, definitely one I won't forget for the rest of my life," head coach Sunny Golloway said. "I think all in all what it comes down to is we've got to do a better job coaching."
Redshirt sophomore pitcher Justin Camp started strong on the mound for the Tigers while only allowing one hit and striking out a career-high seven batters through five innings. But through Auburn's first five innings they were struggling as well, only having two hits and the score remained 0-0 through five.
Then in the top of the sixth the momentum of the game changed.
Alabama State loaded the bases with their first three batters of the inning then right fielder Cesar Rivera bunted for a successful hit to make it 1-0. Then a poor executed bunt ended up flying over the right side infielders to make it to right field and add another bases loaded RBI bunt for a hit. Then Camp walked in a run and Reid Carter came out of the bullpen to take the mound with the bases loaded and two outs.
Carter successfully got out of the inning by catching a line drive right back at him.
In the bottom of the sixth Anfernee Grier led off by hitting a stand up double down the right field line, which was Auburn's first extra base hit of the season. Dan Glevenyak then layed down a sacrifice bunt to advance Grier to third. Then Ryan Tella hit a sacrifice fly to centerfield to make it 3-1. Alabama State ended the sixth with three consecutive outs and then added another run in the seventh to increase their lead to 4-1.
Auburn showed more sparks of offense in the bottom of the seventh when two consecutive hitters were hit by pitches. Then Blake Austin responded while he was in a full count with a stand up double to score both J.J. Shaffer and Damek Tomscha. Damon Haecker kept the rally going with a single to advance Austin to third. With one out already, Auburn ended the inning with two consecutive outs.
In the top of the eighth Alabama State put the game out of reach starting with a lead off triple by Emmanuel Marrero. Branden Castro followed with a single up the middle to drive in the run. Alabama State's No. 9 hitter then hit a standup double off the wall to make it 6-3. Auburn then subbed out Trey Cochran-Gill for closer Terrance Dedrick with one out.
Two errors and two hits followed to make the score 9-3.
Auburn did not get a hit in their last two at bats and the score remained 9-3.
"Right now the coaches are going through a learning process because I don't think the players have changed much," Golloway said. "They bought in completely in the fall and then I haven't seen much of what we did in the fall so we're going to have to have a heart-to-heart and figure it out."
Auburn's next game is at Plainsman Park this Friday Feb. 21 at 6 p.m. against Arkansas Pine Bluff.
(02/17/14 1:50am)
For the third time in this weekend's Tiger Invitational, Auburn softball mercy-ruled their opponent, beating Winthrop 16-0 Sunday.
Auburn's offense exploded right from the start of the game.
In the top of the first, Auburn scored two runs. One came because of an error at second base, but the other was an RBI single down the third base line by McKenzie Kilpatrick.
Auburn came back in the second inning with two more runs.
Then, in the top of the third Auburn's offense got even better, when the Tigers scored seven runs in one inning.
Austyn West started the rally off with an RBI single, which caused the second pitching change for Winthrop.
The bases were loaded for the majority of the inning, and Winthrop's pitchers could not seem to find the strike zone. Two consecutive walks scored the runners at third.
To continue the rally, Kasey Cooper hit a grand slam to make it 11-0.
Marcy Harper started the game on the mound for Auburn and threw three scoreless innings while also not allowing a hit.
Jenna Abbott came in for relief to complete the shutout. Abbott also shined at the plate, hitting two home runs.
Abbott and Maria Mitchell hit two consecutive pinch-hit home runs in the fourth inning to put the game out of reach.
"It's about experience and I thought Jenna and Maria did an outstanding job coming off the bench and getting the big hit," head coach Clint Myers said.
Auburn finished their Tiger Invitational this weekend with five wins and no losses to improve their season record to 9-1-1.
(02/16/14 8:03pm)
In the final game of the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Fla., Auburn beat University of Connecticut 7-3 Sunday.
Freshman standout Keegan Thompson earned his first win of his collegiate career, pitching 5.2 innings while also having nine strikeouts.
Thompson only gave up one run and two hits on the day.
"(Keegan was) really special," said Auburn head coach Sunny Golloway. "He had a lot more strikeouts than I would have liked to have seen. When you have to strike out a lot of people, your pitch count gets up. We went and got him at 99 pitches, but that allowed us to go to the bullpen."
Auburn's offense sparked in the third inning with four runs and four hits.
"We had some opportunities early," Golloway said. "We let some opportunities get away from us, but it's early in the season and we understand that. I thought we did a good job. We stepped on the gas and tried to steal some bases and do some things today to give us more opportunities, and that worked out. You've just got to put the ball in play sometimes, and that's what we were able to do."
Connecticut's first run came in the fifth when Griffin Garabedian had an RBI single, which turned out to be Thompson's only earned run.
Auburn responded in the sixth inning with two more runs thanks to a two-RBI hit by Damek Tomscha.
The Tigers' final run came in the seventh when Dan Glevenyak hit an RBI single.
Closer Terrance Dedrick came in for the four out save to end the game.
Auburn's next game is this Wednesday, Feb. 19, in their home opener against Alabama State.
(02/15/14 9:47pm)
Auburn baseball lost to Ohio State 1-0 Saturday against Ohio State, stranding nine runners on base in the process.
Despite throwing six innings and only allowing four hits, Michael O'Neal picked up the loss on the mound because of the lack of offensive production.
The lone run in the game came in the fourth inning when Ohio State scored off of an RBI single by Josh Dezse.
Auburn executed one-out bunts, which ended up in runners being thrown out on third base twice. A hit and run also resulted in Anfernee Grier being thrown out at home.
Head coach Sunny Golloway was not happy after the game.
"I'm as mad as I've been in seven or eight years," Golloway said. "When we had runners on first and second, the third baseman just stayed there. He did not move one time."
Auburn hitters bunted the ball all day long, but were advised to bunt it to anywhere but the pitcher, even though two bunts went right to the pitcher.
"All you have to do is bunt the ball with conviction down the third-base line. We tried to exploit that twice and bunted the ball to the pitcher," Golloway said. "We did it twice. We popped one up in a crucial situation."
In close games like this one, missed bunt attempts end up hurting the Tigers in the end.
"I should have put this baseball team in a better position to win. Nothing against Ohio State, but this is a game that disappoints us. It's a game we have to win if we're going to be who we're going to be," Golloway said.
Auburn's final game in the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Fla. is against University of Connecticut tomorrow at 10 a.m.
(02/14/14 9:31pm)
First-year head baseball coach Sunny Golloway said after Auburn's last preseason scrimmage that the most important game the Tigers play all year might be their first game.
On Friday, the Tigers took care of business to kick off the Golloway Era at Auburn.
The Tigers started the season strong by defeating Indiana State 4-0 on the first day of the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Fla.
Right-hander Dillon Ortman started his senior campaign on the mound with a win, pitching a scoreless five complete innings, while allowing five hits and striking out three batters.
Freshman Damon Haecker had the first hit of the season in the top of the second inning, an RBI single that drove in Jordan Ebert for the Tigers' first run of the year.
The score remained 1-0 in Auburn's favor until the sixth inning, when senior catcher Blake Austin hit a two-RBI single scoring both Damek Tomscha and Keegan Thompson.
In the bottom of the sixth, redshirt sophomore Justin Camp came in to relieve Ortman and stayed on the mound for the rest of the game, pitching four scoreless innings on his way to earning the save.
Auburn's fourth and final run of the day came in the seventh inning. The Tigers showcased their bunting skills, which they had been working on throughout preseason scrimmages.
Thompson laid down a well-executed bunt to score fellow freshman J.J. Shaffer from third base.
Auburn's next game in the Snowbird Classic is tomorrow, Feb. 15, at 11 a.m. against Ohio State. Senior left-hander Michael O'Neal will start on the mound for the Tigers.
(02/14/14 8:00pm)
Coming off of three exhausting road meets, which featured two ice storms and trips to Baton Rouge, Fayetteville and Colorado Springs, the No. 10 gymnastics team is ready to finally be home and looking to snap Alabama’s 106-meet winning streak this Friday night, Feb. 14, in the Auburn Arena.“Not only is it better that the girls get back and get to rest up, we’re exhausted, we’re beat up,” head coach Jeff Graba said. “They get to sleep in their own beds. But it’s also we get to be in front of our fans, that’s a lot of energy that these people bring.”The Auburn-Alabama rivalry is not only in full-swing nowadays with football. The Iron Bowl of gymnastics this Friday in Auburn will pull fans from both fan bases.“[The home crowd] has a huge impact,” Graba said. “That’s why Alabama is bussing fans down. They’re trying to make this their home field advantage. “So, we need the student section to show up because it’s a huge rivalry for us, and we draw a lot of energy off of the fan base.”As they prepare, the team is doing their best to focus on only what they can control, but is not ignoring the importance of a meet like this against a top-five team, which happens to be their rival.“Not only is it just Alabama, it’s also that they’re a multi-time national champion and sort of a juggernaut in gymnastics,” Graba said. “It’s a huge opportunity for our program to prove to the rest of the country that we’re competitive with a top five program.”On a relatively young team with many freshmen having an impact on the final scores, the upperclassmen have guided them on how to handle the pressure that comes with a meet of this magnitude.“The nice thing is, going to LSU and Arkansas on the road,” Graba said. “I think our freshmen are now starting to listen to our upperclassmen because they were able to say what kind of environment that’s going to be and how aggressive it can be on the road.”Luckily for the freshmen, their first Alabama meet of their careers will be at home, and they will not have to deal with the Tuscaloosa road environment until later in the season. Not only does having a home meet help with drawing more fans than the visiting team, it also helps Auburn with the event rotation.“That’s the advantage of being at home, the away team has to finish on beam in a hostile environment,” Graba said. “It’d be good if our fan base was there and loud and aggressive.”Graba said the meet could be decided during the final rotation of the night and is confident this team will be able to handle the pressure.“To me, the identity of this team seems to rise to the occasion, so I’m expecting us to be really good this Friday,” Graba said.
(02/11/14 2:00pm)
This year's baseball team has loads of experience under their belts with 11 seniors on the roster.
The veteran senior class will be mixed with one of the most highly rated freshmen classes in the SEC as well.
In order for the freshmen class to fulfill their potential, they have looked to the senior leaders to guide them.
"I think we have a great chance to make a great impact. It also speaks volumes of our senior class," freshman pitcher Kevin Davis said. "Obviously our team is not about any individuals, it's not about one single guy. It's about Auburn, the Auburn family and it's about getting to Omaha."
New Auburn head coach Sunny Golloway said Davis, who pitched for Team USA this summer, is one of two freshmen right-handed pitchers who could potentially fill the Friday night or Sunday spot in the pitching rotation.
The other freshman pitcher is Keegan Thompson, who is likely going to be in the starting rotation while also fighting for a starting job at first base and designated hitter.
"He's shown us a glimpse of maybe what Tim Hudson was back in the day and that's saying a lot. He can really swing the bat," Golloway said. "I like his athleticism around first base and the way he competes on the mound with his quiet nature but competitiveness."
The talent of the freshmen class does not stop at pitchers.
Auburn also has one of the top shortstops from the state of Florida, Damon Haecker, who is starting at second base right now.
Another freshman, Anfernee Greer, was the No. 1 high school player from the state of Alabama. Greer is currently going to be the starting right fielder on opening day Feb. 14 in Port Charlotte, Fla.
Golloway has given praise to coaches on last year's staff who were uncertain of their role this year because they still worked hard to recruit an impressive freshmen class.
"How does (pitching coach) Scott Foxhall continue to show character during the transition, not even knowing if he's going to have a job and still land these guys speaks volumes to him," Golloway said.
Golloway has also highlighted the senior class as being a tremendous help during the transition period.
"Their attitude and effort have been outstanding. Those are two things you control every day in your life regardless of baseball or what you do in life," Golloway said. "Your attitude and your effort: you control those things and our seniors have done a great job controlling that."
Senior centerfielder Ryan Tella is looking forward to bounce back from his junior year season and "go out with a bang" his senior season by making a regional.
"Being a part of a huge senior class with all of these guys that I've played with the past three years, it means a lot to us to persevere and make a good example for the younger class," Tella said. "We've all played together, we've gotten the younger guys beyond where we need them to be. Once the 14th hits they're not freshmen anymore, so they're almost there, it's going to be good."
(02/10/14 11:00pm)
Ever since Sunny Golloway was hired to be the next head baseball coach at Auburn University in June, he has said that Auburn is not going to wait around before becoming a force again in the SEC.
"We're going to win and we're going to win right now," Golloway said before their first spring practice of the season on Jan. 26.
Golloway is no stranger to winning.
He is fresh off of a Big 12 Conference tournament title with the University of Oklahoma last season.
During the past eight seasons serving as head coach for the Sooners, he also led them to seven NCAA Regional berths, four NCAA Super Regionals and the 2010 College World Series in Omaha, Neb.
Despite being picked to finish last in the SEC in the preseason polls, the team believes making it to Omaha is a reachable goal this season.
Auburn has not made it to the College World Series since 1997.
"It's the first time starting a season my team hasn't been in the Top 25," Golloway said. "Why? Those guys can play. I can coach a little bit."
The new coach is not the only one that has his expectations set high for this season.
The players, most importantly the senior leaders, are buying into Golloway's system and believing in it.
"The expectations are greater and there are more of them," senior centerfielder Ryan Tella said. "Coach told us that you actually have to believe it to actually do it and that's what we're starting to do.
"Every day we talk about believing in what we have in store for us in May and June."
Ever since the team has worn "Omaha" on the back of their practice jerseys from the beginning of fall practices, the team has believed in their motto of "Omahauburn."
"That's the goal," senior catcher Blake Austin said. "If anything less, it's a failure."
In order to achieve that goal, Golloway knows his team must capitalize on their strengths, which are pitching and defense.
"UCLA won the national championship last year with a .250 batting average and they won games 3-2," Golloway said. "That's how we're going to be able to win games 3-2. I think it's going to be pitching or defense that will be our strength.
"It has to be if we're going to be a championship type club."
According to Golloway, the team's philosophy has been revolved around trying to get control of games early by playing smart baseball then letting his pitchers and defense close out games.
"We're going to bunt the baseball," Golloway said. "We're going to manufacture runs, and if we've got the lead in the fifth or sixth inning, we want to feel like the ballgame is over. Because we know how to defend, and we'll flat pitch it really well."
(02/09/14 3:09am)
No. 10 Auburn gymnastics team continued their success on the road in Colorado Springs, Colo. with a 195.95-193.025 win over the United States Air Force Academy.
Auburn outscored Air Force in all four events and even tied their season high score on the uneven bars with a 49.075.
This was also the fourth consecutive meet freshman MJ Rott scored at least a 9.9 on vault. Rott led the way with a 9.925 as the Tigers scored a 49.275 on vault.
With one rotation remaining Auburn had a comfortable 147.5-144.025 lead over Air Force.
The Tigers finished the night with a season low 48.45 beam score, but it was still enough to keep the lead and win.
Auburn returns home for their next meet Friday Feb. 14 hoping to beat their rival, No. 7 Alabama. Alabama currently has a 105-meet winning streak over Auburn.
(02/06/14 10:47pm)
Next weekend from Feb. 14 to Feb. 16, the Auburn baseball team will be playing in the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Fla. to open up their 2014 season.
Head coach Sunny Golloway announced the pitching rotation for the opening series, which features two seniors and a true freshman.
Coming off of an impressive fall scrimmage season with a 1.71 earned run average (ERA) and a 2-1 record last spring, senior RHP Dillon Ortman will get the opening day start on the mound Feb. 14 against Indiana State.
As expected, senior LHP Michael O'Neal will continue to start on Saturday games, like he did last spring, with a start Saturday, Feb. 15 vs. Ohio State. O'Neal led the Tigers' pitching staff last season with an 8-4 record and a 2.73 ERA.
"I always like to throw your best guy on Saturday. Is (O'Neal) our best guy? I don't know for sure," Golloway said. "But I know he threw well last year on Saturday so I'm not going to try to mess with that, if it's not broke don't fix it type attitude."
For the Sunday game against University of Connecticut, freshman RHP Keegan Thompson will make his collegiate pitching debut.
Golloway is confident in Thompson's abilities on the mound, at the plate and at first base.
"He's shown us a glimpse of maybe what Tim Hudson was back in the day and that's saying a lot," Golloway said. "If he's not pitching until Sunday we can protect the arm at first base if he wins that starting job. But so far he's shown me that we need to have his bat in the lineup, he means an awful lot."
Thompson is looking forward to the challenge of potentially starting at multiple positions in his first year.
"It's going to be fun. It's going to be kind of difficult going from pitching to hitting to first base and getting practice work in at every position," Thompson said. "But I'm doing the best I can and hoping it'll work out for the best."
Auburn will play eight televised baseball games in 2014
The 2014 SEC baseball television schedule was also announced today. Auburn will play eight televised games this season, including six at home in Plainsman Park.
ESPNU's Thursday Night SEC Baseball Game of the Week will begin Thursday, March 27, with a matchup featuring Missouri at Auburn at 7:30 p.m. ET. The Thursday Night SEC Baseball Game of the Week will run eight weeks through May 15.
Auburn will make another national TV on Saturday, April 19, when Auburn's home game against South Carolina will be on the CBS Sports Network.
Here is the full schedule of Auburn's televised games this season:
Sat., March 22 - at Tennessee - 3 p.m. (CSS)\0x2028
Thu., March 27 - Missouri - 6:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Sat., March 29 - Missouri - Noon (FSN)
Sun., April 6 - at Ole Miss - 1:30 p.m. (CSS)
Sat., April 19 - South Carolina - 4 p.m. (CBS Sports Network)
Sun., April 20 - South Carolina - 1 p.m. (CSS)
Sat., May 3 - Mississippi State - 6 p.m. (CSS)
Sat., May 17 - LSU - 1 p.m. (FSN)
Final scrimmages this weekend
This weekend, Auburn will have its final three intrasquad scrimmages with games each day at Plainsman Park on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m.
All of these scrimmages are free and open to the public for any fans interested in getting a preview of the 2014 Auburn baseball team before they open up the season on Feb. 14.