AUBURN, Ala. – Junior pitchers Tanner Burns and Cody Greenhill combined to pitch a one-hit shutout as No. 17 Auburn defeated Chicago State, 6-0, in the series opener at Plainsman Park Friday night.
The one hit allowed was the fewest in a game since Casey Mize's no-hitter against Northeastern on Mar. 9, 2018.
"Tanner Burns had his best outing of the year," head coach Butch Thompson said. "I just thought he was texturing pitches and putting pitches in the right spot. He maintained all his strength from the stretch. Cody Greenhill, his fastball was electric tonight, albeit for two innings."
Burns (3-1, 2.42) pitched 7.0 scoreless innings and struck out a season-high 10 batters en route to the win. It was Burns' first game with double digit strikeouts this season and the fourth of his career.
The Decatur, Alabama native retired the first nine batters he faced and allowed just one hit – an infield single to start the top of the seventh.
"I feel like I was pitching tonight and I feel like I had all my stuff — fastball, changeup, curveball, slider," Burns said. "I tried to make quick innings, work ahead, stay ahead and then try to finish at-bats."
Greenhill entered in relief to start the eighth and picked up right where his teammate left off, facing the minimum in 2.0 innings. Greenhill struck out three batters and extended his scoreless inning streak to start the season to 12.2.
Auburn (11-3) started the scoring in the contest on back-to-back doubles from Kason Howell and Rankin Woley in the fourth. Woley's double drove in a pair of runs and was his seventh of the season.
Clinging to a two-run lead, Steven Williams broke the game open with a 415-foot, three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh to extend the lead to 5-0. Woley then drove in his third run of the game on a single up the middle.
"I was really out front on (the first few at-bats)," Williams said. "I talked to Gabe and he said sting left-center and that's what I was thinking and he just kind of left one middle-in, heart of the plate, and I just let the barrel go and put a good swing on it. It felt really good."
Burns and Greenhill combined to strikeout 13 in the contest, marking Auburn's 14th straight game with 10 or more strikeouts to start the season.
The Auburn pitching staff has turned in back-to-back shutouts and hasn't allowed a run in 21.1 innings dating back to the sixth inning of the middle game vs. Wright State.
Offensively, five players turned in two or more hits. Matt Scheffler matched a season and career high with three hits, while Ryan Bliss, Williams, Howell and Woley turned in two hits apiece.
Auburn and Chicago State continue the three-game series with the middle game scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday.