AUBURN, Ala. – Battling from behind, No. 21 Auburn softball (30-12) stormed back to knock off in-state foe Troy 7-5 Wednesday night at Jane B. Moore Field.
Auburn had to fight from behind early as the Trojans (28-11-1) struck in the top of the first inning with a two-home from Libby Baker, but the Tigers answered immediately with three runs in the home half. Auburn has now won at least 30 games in four of the last six seasons under head Coach Mickey Dean.
"I thought we hit the ball well, ran the bases well, and I thought we played good defense," Dean said postgame. "The key is always to answer back, and I thought we were able to do that. When you answer back, it keeps the momentum on your side. We knew they were going to come in here ready. They didn't play well at their place, and they're a really good team. We knew they were going to come in here tonight ready to play."
Junior KK McCrary led the Tigers at the plate with a 2-for-4 performance, slugging a double and collecting three RBI. Sophomore Bri Ellis also turned in a multi-RBI performance, driving in two with a double in the first inning.
"It felt great to get a win," McCrary said. "They're a good team. We've been working on hitting in high-pressure situations in practice, so I was really happy that I was able to come through for my team."
Maddie Penta earned the 18th victory of her junior campaign. Penta tossed five innings and allowed three runs off three hits and a walk. The right-handed ace fanned seven.
Trailing by two, Nelia Peralta led off the bottom of the first with a hit by pitch and scored on a double from McCrary. With Lindsey Garcia on board via a walk, both Tigers moved up an extra 60 feet by tagging up on a foul out behind the plate. Ellis poked a ball down the line in right field for a double to clear the bags and put the Tigers up 3-2.
Troy locked the game up at 3-3, leading off the second inning with a solo home run from Audra Thompson. Penta delivered some revenge with three straight strikeouts to retire the side.
Leading off the bottom of the third with a pair of singles, Auburn broke the stalemate with help of a Troy error. Troy recorded an out on a pop up back to the circle. Pinch runner Abbey Smith broke for the plate and retreated back to third to force an errant throw which allowed her to score. Icess Tresvik followed up with a sacrifice fly to plate the second run of the inning to push the lead to 5-3.
The Tigers took advantage of another Trojan error to lead off the fourth inning. A pinch-hit single and stolen base from Rose Roach put two Tigers in scoring position. McCrary cleared the bags with a single to left field.
Auburn maintained its 7-4 lead until the seventh inning as Troy knocked a solo home run to right field.
Shelby Lowe earned her first save of the season, tossing the final two innings in relief. Lowe gave up a pair of runs off three hits. The save was Lowe's seventh of her career, moving her into a tie for seventh in school history with Mary Petrie (1998-01).
Auburn returns to Southeastern Conference play this weekend, hosting No. 13 LSU at Jane B. Moore Field. Friday's series opener is set for 5 p.m. CT and will air on the SEC Network. Auburn softball's "Friday Night Lights" giveaways continue as fans will receive a light-up baton while supplies last.