AUSTIN, Texas — No. 6 Auburn (27-10, 9-6) will visit No. 1 Texas (30-5, 13-2) in a three-game series this weekend at UFCU Disch-Falk Field. Auburn has been on fire as of late winning seven of their last eight including a dominant sweep over No. 8 LSU, but facing Texas in the Lone Star State will be the Tigers toughest test this season. The Longhorns have won every SEC series they have faced this season, most recently a nail-biter against Kentucky.
“There are many challenges to come and we’re only at the halfway point, but for a weekend, everybody got to see what the coaches and I see every day,” Auburn head coach Butch Thompson said. “How these guys continue to fight and hang together. They’re close, our dugout great, our locker room great. That’s the key to having hope, and they’ve been amazing with that.”
The matchup between Auburn and Texas will pit aces on aces all weekend. Starting on Thursday night, two of the best pitchers in the SEC will face off. Sam Dutton will start for Auburn. Dutton is 5-2 this season with a 2.34 ERA. For Texas, lefty Jared Spencer will get the nod. Spencer is 4-1 and has a 3.08 ERA.
Friday’s probable matchup pits Auburn lefty Cade Fisher against Texas’ Luke Harrison. Fisher earned his first win of the season last weekend in a scoreless outing against LSU . Harrison is 2-0 with a 2.93 ERA. As for Saturday, both starters are TBD.
Auburn’s hitters will have their hands full this weekend with a lethal Texas pitching staff. The Longhorns lead the SEC in team ERA at 2.97 and have given up only 20 home runs all season. A key player to watch this weekend is Cooper McMurray. McMurray has been great all season batting .348 and leading the Tigers in home runs with eight.
Auburn’s pitchers will also need to bring their A-game. Texas has a team batting average of .287 and is led by Rylan Galvan and Will Gasparino, both of which have team leading 11 home runs.
The good news for the Tigers is that the Longhorns have struggled against southpaws, so expect Cade Fisher to have a great outing.
Texas enters the series having also won seven of their last eight games. Auburn, meanwhile, enters coming off of a 4-3 road win at Jacksonville State in the mid-week and a series sweep over then No. 3 LSU last weekend. Auburn is 12-6 against ranked opponents this season.
The first pitch on Thursday is set for 6:00 p.m., Friday is set for 7:00 p.m. and 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. All three games will air on the Auburn Sports Network and the SECN+.
