March 4, 2016
AUBURN, Ala. - The No. 3/4 Auburn Tigers overcame a 7-0 deficit by scoring eight unanswered runs to earn an 8-7 win over Indiana. A walkoff sacrifice fly by Madi Gipson capped the comeback in the eighth inning.
The Hoosiers took an early 4-0 lead in the first inning after a grand slam from first baseman CaraMia Tsirigos. A strong inning in the circle from Marcy Harper held the Hoosiers scoreless in the second inning, but Indiana drove in two runs in the third and one in the fourth.
After three scoreless innings, the Tigers' bats started heating up in the fourth bringing in four runs. A solo home run from Emily Carosone put the Tigers on the board and Kasey Cooper followed up with another solo homer breaking the all-time Auburn home run record with 43.
"When you are on the field, down 7-0 in the fourth inning and you are close to getting run ruled on your own field, it does something to you," said Cooper. "We might not have started this like Auburn softball, but we are going to finish like Auburn Softball. We dug down to find our character for Auburn Softball this year. We are here to win, and we needed that."
Doubles from Madi Gibson and Courtney Shea also brought runs home in the four-run fourth inning. Down 7-5, The Tigers didn't stop there. Big hits from Carly Wallace, Victoria Draper and Jade Rhodes tied the game at 7-7.
Strong performances in the circle from Makayla Martin and Rachel Walters kept the Hoosiers scoreless for the remainder of the game. Martin pitched five innings and got nine strikeouts for a career high to help get the Tigers to the win. Walters closed the game throwing one inning as she earned the win for the game.
"Makayla came in and shut the door, and Rachel came in and put a few nails in the door," said Head Coach Clint Myers.
With the game tied 7-7 the international tiebreak was seen for the first time this season. With a runner on second, the Tigers showed a strong defensive performance keeping the Hoosiers from scoring. With bases loaded, Madi Gibson hit the walkoff fly ball to score Tiffany Howard.
"The first three innings were just not Auburn," said Myers. "What you saw starting in the fourth was Auburn. This was the first time this season we were down at home. We were down seven and we came back to win the ballgame. That says a lot about the character, the drive and the fight in this team. I thought it was a very good team effort."
UP NEXT
Auburn continues to host the Wilson/DeMarini Classic the rest of the weekend with a pair of games against Murray State (12:30 p.m.) and Bryant (3 p.m.) on Saturday before capping the tournament with a doubleheader against Georgia State on Sunday starting at 1 p.m. The Tigers look to continue the win streak as they face off against Murray State and Bryant University in day 2 of the Wilson/DeMarini Classic. The double header is scheduled to begin at 12:30 p.m.