The Auburn Tigers (19-18, 2-14) had a rough game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs (24-14, 8-8), losing 8-1 to start the series and the second half of SEC conference play.
Entering tonight’s game, Auburn had six games in which they lost by one run, and one of the toughest SEC starts to an SEC schedule facing a team that was ranked No. 8 or higher at the time of competition.
This series though is important for both teams in terms of SEC play as Mississippi State is looking to improve their standing in the SEC West, and sweeping Auburn this weekend would help in that endeavor. Auburn on the other hand is looking for conference wins to improve their standing in the conference to not be at the bottom of the SEC West.
Tonight’s game showed who wants to improve their standing more, as Mississippi State put up an impressive performance while the Tigers could not put the puzzle pieces together to rally for a win.
Entering the seventh inning, Auburn was down 5-1 with Auburn’s second-best hitter Ike Irish up to bat, and the bases were loaded. However, the Tigers were unable to convert though as Ike Irish struck out swinging, and after that, it appeared as though the Tigers knew they weren’t going to win the game.
Even though the Bulldogs were up by four runs heading into the bottom of the seventh, the Bulldogs managed to extend their lead and seal the game with three additional runs to finish the seventh.
Mississippi State’s runs in the seventh inning were all scored off of doubles, with Jordan, Hujsak, and Kohler hitting the doubles and Jordan, Hines, and Hujsak scored the runs to extend the Bulldog's lead to seven.
Auburn still had two more innings to hit, but Mississippi State’s pitcher Tyler Davis through four strikeouts limiting Auburn’s chances to score, and closing the game out for the Bulldogs.
The stars of tonight's game were the pitcher for Mississippi State combined they threw fifteen strikeouts, eleven by starting pitcher Khal Stephen, and four by closing pitcher Tyler Davis.
Auburn did have chances to win tonight, but they were unable to connect as they had four innings without a single hit, and in the fourth and eighth innings all three batters struck out, not even having a chance to get on base.
Tonight’s game was a performance on how to play baseball by the Bulldogs, while the Tigers still have things to work on if they are to come back and win the series.
There are still two more games remaining in the series with the first pitch of Saturday’s game to take place at 5:00 p.m. CT on the SEC Network and the Auburn Sports Network.
