AUBURN, Ala. – Hitting the road for its lone away date of the fall exhibition season, Auburn softball preps for a twin billing against in-state foes Auburn Montgomery and Alabama State on Sunday at the Barbara Williams Softball Complex on the campus of Alabama State.
Sunday's doubleheader begins at 11 a.m. CT versus AUM. The Tigers take on the Lady Hornets at 1:30 p.m. CT.
"This weekend will provide a new challenge to our young team," said head coach Mickey Dean. "They'll be thrown out of their routine and their comfort zone outside of our own ballpark. We'll see how they respond to an early road test."
Executing in all three phases of the game, Auburn opened its fall slate last weekend, sweeping Snead State and Troy in a doubleheader. Offensively, Auburn posted a .403 batting average and scored a combined 32 runs with the help of eight extra-base hits. The Tiger pitching staff allowed just two earned runs and totaled 15 strikeouts. While on defense, Auburn committed just a pair of errors.
With several returners being limited in the fall, Auburn relied heavily on its newcomers and underclassmen to complete the sweep last Sunday while some familiar faces turned in standout performances.
Junior Annabelle Widra paced the way for the Tiger offense with a perfect 5-for-5 effort at the plate with three runs scored, four RBI and three stolen bases to open fall competition. Widra also tossed four scoreless innings in the circle with a pair of strikeouts to pick up a win.
Fellow junior Abbey Smith turned in a three-hit performance and scored five runs. Newcomer Amelia Lech made her presence known as her two hits were both home runs, driving in a team-leading five RBI. Sophomore Riley McNemar, junior Makayla Packer and senior KK McCrary also slugged homers last weekend.
Sophomore Emmah Rolfe led the Tigers in the circle with eight strikeouts in her four scoreless frames. The freshmen duo of Chalea Clemmons and Malayna Tamborra made their debuts in the circle and also saw time in the batter's box with each picking up a hit.
This weekend's doubleheader will not be streamed, but fans can stay updated through the Auburn softball X (formerly Twitter) account: @AuburnSoftball.