Feb. 9, 2017
PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico -- Kendall Veach blasted two home runs to guide No. 2 Auburn to a 3-2 victory against No. 1 Oklahoma Thursday afternoon.
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The Tigers (1-0) registered their third consecutive win against a top-ranked team and tallied seven hits, including three extra-base hits.
Makayla Martin earned the start in the circle and went 6.1 innings, allowing seven hits and two earned runs. Martin induced 13 groundouts on the day and picked up her first win of 2017.
Morgan Podany, who made her fourth career start as an outfielder, tied a career-high with two hits in the seven-inning affair.
Auburn started on the front foot right out of the gate, scoring a run in the top of the first. With two outs and runners on second and third base, Courtney Shea delivered with a two-strike RBI single to center to put the Tigers on the board.
Martin dominated from the start and allowed just two to reach base for Oklahoma (0-1) in the opening four stanzas.
In the top of the third, Veach scorched her first career roundtripper to double Auburn's lead to 2-0.
The next two innings flew by without a hit by either squad.
In the sixth, the Tigers threatened to lengthen the margin after Victoria Draper and Kasey Cooper hit back-to-back singles and worked their way around to second and third with two down. However, the Sooners were able to get out of the jam.
Veach drilled her second home run of contest in the top of the seventh, a solo shot, to make it 3-0 in favor of the designated road team.
Oklahoma made things interesting in its final chance at the plate. The Sooners got consecutive singles from their top two hitters in the lineup and both scored on a pinch-hit single up the middle.
Kaylee Carlson then came on in relief and struck out the final two batters to send Auburn to victory, picking up her third career save.
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Playing in the nightcap of a two-game day, the Tigers dropped a 2-1 decision to No. 13 Washington in 10 innings.
Auburn (1-1) was held to just four hits on offense as Victoria Draper, Courtney Shea, Kendall Veach and Carlee Wallace took care of the offense for the Tigers.
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In the circle, Kaylee Carlson made her first start of the season and went 8.0 innings, allowing just one earned run and striking out three. Makayla Martin tossed 2.0 innings in relief.
Auburn got on the board in its first chance at the plate. Kasey Cooper walked and advanced on a wild pitch to lead things off. Wallace and Veach followed up with consecutive walks, respectively. Wallace then crossed the plate on a wild pitch as she beat the throw back from the catcher to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead.
Washington (1-0) reached base by way of a hit in the next five innings, but Carlson worked her way out of multiple jams to keep the score line in favor of Auburn.
In the sixth, the Tigers put runners on the corners, but were unable to add it their lead and headed into the seventh with the lead.
The Huskies got on with a leadoff hit and worked their way around the bases for a run-scoring single to knot the contest up at 1-1.
Auburn could not scratch across a run in the home half, sending the game into extra innings.
In the eighth, Draper made her defensive presence known when she stole a would-be extra-base hit with a diving snare in center and kept the score level at 1-1.
Despite a full-extension grab by Morgan Podany in the 10th, Washington put a run across through an RBI single with two outs.
Wallace then flared a single in the bottom of the stanza, but the Tigers were unable to tie the game up and eventually fell, 2-1.
Auburn returns to the field Friday afternoon at 1 p.m. against Nebraska.