AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn defeated Rhode Island, 14-1, to secure the team's first series sweep of the season Sunday afternoon at Plainsman Park.
Sunday's win capped off a six-game week in which the Tigers outscored opponents 78-11, including a 49-3 run differential against Rhode Island.
"Consistency," head coach Butch Thompson said when asked about what pleased him most this weekend. "I think we talked about consistency, and the thing we've done the most consistently is play defense. We did that this entire week and for really the entire season. That model of consistency showed up in every facet and allowed us to have success."
Four long balls from Jake Wyandt, Brooks Carlson, Ryan Dyal and Garrett Farquhar propelled Auburn (11-2) to the win and accounted for 11 of the 14 runs in the contest. The home runs from Carlson, Farquhar and Wyandt were the first of their Auburn careers.
Eight of the nine Auburn starters recorded a hit in the contest with Blake Rambusch, Kason Howell, Brody Moore, Bryson Ware, Dyal and Wyandt chipping in two apiece. Cam Hill, Carlson, Farquhar, Dyal and Wyandt each recorded multiple RBI in the contest, led by four apiece from Dyal and Wyandt.
"Some guys have gotten going offensively, and that's allowed us to link up, turn our lineup over and create some consistency there. That absolutely happened in this four-game series."
Auburn starter Hayden Mullins used a big strikeout to escape a bases-loaded jam in the first inning and kept Rhode Island (0-10) off the board. The sophomore southpaw ultimately worked three scoreless innings, allowing only one hit with a season-high five punchouts.
With two outs and two strikes in the second inning, Wyandt gave Auburn an early lead with a three-run blast over the left field wall. The graduate transfer has had multiple RBI in three of his last four games.
"I wasn't afraid to hit with two strikes right there," Wyandt said. "I was pretty confident with how I was feeling at the plate today. He ended up making a mistake that I didn't miss."
"It's really nice to see him (Wyandt) kind of be rewarded for how much he has invested and put everyone else first," Thompson added.
Freshman right-hander Parker Carlson (1-0, 3.60) earned the win in relief after entering for Mullins in the fourth inning. He worked a career high three innings and allowed one run on two hits with one walk and four strikeouts. A Rhode Island home run in the fifth inning ended Auburn's streak of 27.2 innings without allowing a run.
The Tigers added to the lead with a five-run fifth inning highlighted by Carlson's two-run homer. Hill started the scoring in the five-run frame with a two-run single before Carlson's homer. Wyandt capped it off with a sacrifice fly.
Dyal extended Auburn's lead to 12-1 as he greeted Rhode Island reliever Jon Morrison with a grand slam to right field on the first pitch he saw. The redshirt sophomore finished the weekend going 6-for-12 with six runs, three doubles, two homers and 10 RBI.
The home run frenzy continued in the bottom half of the seventh as Farquhar's first of the year pushed Auburn's lead to the eventual final of 14-1.
Graduate lefty Tommy Sheehan entered in the seventh and tossed three scoreless innings on his way to earning his first save of the year. Sheehan allowed just one baserunner on a walk and struck out a season-high five batters.
"I was just trying to stay loose and do what I know I can do," Sheehan said. "I know I can be in the zone and be effective. I think it was a good improvement from the last two outings."
The Tigers are set to take on Tennessee Tech (10-0) Tuesday in Madison, Alabama. First pitch at Toyota Field is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT.
Auburn completes four-game sweep of Rhode Island with 14-1 win
