Tiger Fall In First Game Of NCAA Regional
Box Score | Audio
May 20, 2005
AUBURN - Auburn managed just two hits as third-seeded Florida State defeated the Tigers, 5-0, Friday at Jane B. Moore Field in the opening game of the NCAA Auburn Regional.
The second-seeded Tigers now play the loser of the Baylor-Florida A&M game, which began at 8:45 p.m. CT., Friday night. Auburn and the loser of that game will square off at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, with the winner scheduled to play again at 7:30 p.m.
Casey Hunter earned her 20th win of the season after allowing just two hits - a single and double by Holly Currie - in a complete game effort. She struck out eight and walked two.
Currie started the game for the Tigers (49-17) and fell to 24-10. She worked three innings, allowing four hits and two runs while striking out three.
Florida State (34-26) started off the game's scoring in the second inning. Tatiana George reached on a fielder's choice, then scored on an attempted pickoff at second base. The throw skipped past the bag at second, allowing George to come all the way around and score.
George extended the lead in the fourth when she took a 0-1 offering from Holly Currie and hit it over the right field fence for her seventh home run of the season.
Florida State scored two more in the fifth when Veronica Wootson narrowly placed the ball over the left field fence for her second home run of the season.
Currie was the only Tiger with a hit. She singled in the fourth inning and doubled in the sixth.
Catch Auburn's game Saturday live on the Internet at www.auburntigers.com or in the Auburn area on WANI-AM (1400).
TIGER NOTES: The game was delayed for more than an hour in the second inning due to a combination of rain and lightning ... The game marked Auburn's second straight appearance in an NCAA Regional and the team's first opportunity to host ... Auburn met Florida State for the second time in an NCAA game ... The Tigers lost to the Seminoles, 2-1, in Tallahassee in 2002 ... Auburn fell to 3-11-1 all-time against Florida State all-time.
FLORIDA STATE 5, AUBURN 0
Game Notes
* The game featured a rain delay of 1:15. The rain delay began at 5:34 p.m. CT while play resumed at 6:49 p.m. CT.
* First pitch was 4:59 p.m. CT.
Auburn Notes
* Auburn is now 0-5 in NCAA Tournament games. Auburn is now 49-17 on the season.
* Auburn dropped to 3-11-1 all-time against Florida State, including an 0-2 mark in NCAA Tournament games.
* Holly Currie had both Auburn hits in the contest.
* Friday's loss marked just the third time this season that Auburn has lost back-to-back games. The other two occurrences came against Georgia (April 16) and Alabama (March 23) during Southeastern Conference regular season play.
* The Tigers are now 3-3 in May, 8-2 in night contests, 10-6 in their orange jerseys, 5-13 when trailing after four innings, 4-11 when trailing after five innings and 1-11 when trailing after six innings.
Florida State Notes
* Senior pitcher Casey Hunter had eight strikeouts against Auburn and is within 17 Ks of becoming the all-time Florida State leader.
* Left fielder Natasha Jacob extended her hit streak to 21 games after going 2-for-3.
* Friday's game marked the 17th time that the Seminoles shutout an opponent in NCAA Regional play. Last season, Florida State recorded three shutouts during its run to the Women's College World Series.
* Hunter has appeared in four straight NCAA Regionals and tallied her second win in post-season play. In 2004, Hunter recorded a no-hitter against Long Island.
* Tatiana George's home run tonight established a new four-year career high for the center fielder . She now leads the Seminoles in home runs with seven on the season.
* Hunter has pitched eight two-hitters on the season.
* FSU is now 2-2 vs. Southeastern Conference schools on the season and is 3-3 vs. teams at the Auburn Regional.
* FSU is also 34-23 in NCAA Regionals.
* With two home runs vs. Auburn the Seminoles now have three multi-home run games in their last six appearances. They are now 4-1 on the season when hitting multiple home runs.
* The win snaps a four-game losing streak dating back to game one of a doubleheader vs. Brigham Yound on May 6.
* Hunter took a no-hitter into the fourth inning.
Florida State Quotes
Head Coach Dr. Joannne Graf
"Obviously the first game coming out is crucial. Auburn is a great club and well coached. We have a lot of respect for their team. We feel fortunate to have to have come out a winner in this game. This is the first of many that we need to win in this tournament."
"This season has been a growing process for us and I think we have come a long way. We have not played consistently, but tonight we came together and did. We are going to use this momentum to carry us though the rest of the weekend. Both a Florida A&M and Baylor are good teams or else they would not be here, and they will be tough to beat."
P Casey Hunter
on pitching with the lead...
"Getting the lead is great for me, it makes my job a lot less stressful. It helps me relax. Once we had it though I was able to relax and pitch my game."
LF Nasha Hunter
on Auburn pitchers Holly Currie and Beth DiPeitro...
"They pretty much pitched me the same. Currie pitched me a bunch of drops and DiPietro pitched mostly outside, but other than that, mostly the same."
Auburn Quotes
Head Coach Tina Deese
"It was an extremely difficult loss on our home field. We got down early, and our bats shut down. I was really proud of how our kids came out and played. They came out with guts and enthusiasm"
On pattern in last few losses...
"It's just tough, especially throughout the SEC Tournament. We've had deficits and had to come back. We put a lot of pressure on ourselves. We just need to relax."
P Holly Currie
"I got myself into a hole, and I was having to come out over the plate."
C Sara Dean
On losing at home...
"It's tough, but we can come back. We can bounce back, we just have to hit. We've been ready to play every single game. Hopefully we can turn it on quicker tomorrow."