April 23, 2017
Related Links
-->
AUBURN, Ala. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" Josh Anthony had a career-best four hits with two doubles and three RBI as No. 10 Auburn baseball defeated No. 16 Arkansas 11-6 to take the series Sunday at Plainsman Park.
"We hit five home runs and they hit one, and they are the one that hits all the home runs, so that disarms them a little bit," Auburn head coach Butch Thompson said. "Josh Anthony was 11-for-16 this week. What a great week to just get him going a little bit. With Casey Mize being out, everyone seemed to want to craft that as a story, and it is because he's one of the best pitchers in America, but for our guys time and time again to win nine out of 10 weekend series this season. For Keegan Thompson to be out a weekend and get it done, and now for Casey Mize to be out and somebody to step up with an incredible performance like Andrew Mitchell did today just means a lot to our ballclub and strengthens our team and makes it deeper."
Anthony finished 9-for-12 at the plate in the series with a home run, three doubles, seven RBI and five runs scored. His seventh inning 2-run double broke a 6-6 tie and gave Auburn an 8-6 advantage. He followed with another RBI double in the eighth that plated Luke Jarvis for the game's final run.
"We kind of stuck with the same approach that we had since day one," Anthony said. "We just wanted to get in there, hunt fastballs, find a pitch we can drive and drive them."
Mitchell (5-1) tossed five innings of relief allowing three hits and only one run. He posted three strikeouts and no walks. Starter Ryan Watson threw a career-high three innings with two runs allowed.
Auburn (30-12, 12-6 SEC) recorded a season-highs of 16 hits, eight doubles and 10 extra-base hits. The Tigers hit two home runs Sunday and have hit 11 in their last eight games.
Luke Jarvis was 3-for-4 with three RBI, a homer and three runs. Dylan Ingram had a career-best three hits including a homer with three runs scored.
Trailing 1-0 in the second inning, Jarvis belted a 2-run homerun to left field to give Auburn a 2-1 lead. Jonah Todd plated two more runs in the inning on a double off the wall that scored Blake Logan and Anthony.
Arkansas (32-10, 12-6) got a run back in the third to bring the score to 4-2, but Decker answered in the bottom of the inning with a RBI single that plated Ingram and extended the Tigers' lead to 5-2.
Decker was 2-for-4 with two RBI.
The Razorbacks then scored three runs on two singles in the fourth to tie the game at five before Daniel Robert came home on a sac fly from Jarvis to regain the lead at 6-5 after the fourth inning.
Arkansas tied the game one last time in the seventh before Anthony's double sparked a burst of five unanswered runs by the Tigers to close the game. Decker plated Anthony on a double to left to make it 9-6 in the seventh. Ingram smashed a solo shot in the eighth followed by Anthony's final double to chase home Jarvis and an 11-6 lead.
Arkansas reliever Cannon Chadwick (4-2) allowed three runs without recording an out. Starter Josh Alberius allowed four runs in 1.2 innings. The Razorbacks used five pitchers on the day.
Chad Spanberger had four hits and two RBI.
The 5-9 hitters in the Auburn lineup combined for 13 hits, nine runs and nine RBI.
Auburn returns to action Tuesday at 6 pm CT against Troy at Plainsman Park.