April 5, 2016
Daniel Sprinkle got his first win of the season on Tuesday. (Auburn Athletics Photo)
AUBURN, Ala. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" Freshman right-hander Daniel Sprinkle posted career highs with six innings pitched and eight strikeouts as Auburn baseball defeated Georgia State 7-4 on Tuesday at Plainsman Park.
He walked two and allowed two runs on three hits to earn the first victory of his collegiate career and improve to 1-0 on the season.
"I just thought when we got to two strikes we elevated the fastball and they swung through it a lot," Auburn head coach Butch Thompson said. "They really went for it more than other teams but I think it was located better. That was big in the ballgame and it takes a little pressure off your defense when 15 of 27 outs are recorded that way."
Auburn pitchers Sprinkle, Gabe Klobosits (1.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 3K) and Casey Mize (2.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 4 K) finished with a season-high 15 strikeouts on the night. It was the most punch outs for the Tigers since Feb. 13, 2015 vs. Binghamton.
Mize earned his first save of the season.
Freshman catcher Jonathan Foster had a career night with three hits ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" two doubles and two RBI, including a bases-loaded double in the fifth that scored a pair. Anfernee Grier's groundout made it 4-2 one batter later.
Joshua Palacios added a pair of hits. Kyler Deese scored twice.
After falling behind early, Auburn (14-15) closed the gap to 2-1 on a RBI single by Blake Logan in the fourth. It was his 10th RBI in the last five games.
Georgia State got a run back in the seventh, but Jordan Ebert came up with a clutch 2-run single with two outs in the bottom half to make it 6-3.
Joey Roach had two homers for Georgia State (14-15). A 2-run bomb in the third and a solo shot in the eighth.
Ryan Blanton added three hits for GSU.
Garrett Ford allowed six runs on nine hits in 6.2 innings. He dropped to 2-4 on the season.
Auburn is in action next on Thursday when it opens a three-game SEC series at Missouri on ESPNU at 6:30 p.m. CT.