AUBURN, Ala. – No. 17 Auburn fell behind in the first inning and couldn't make up the difference in an 11-2 loss to Indiana in the series finale at Plainsman Park Sunday.
Sparked by a first-inning grand slam, Indiana's 11 runs came on 14 hits, including five for extra bases.
"We really wanted them to get out of town before they started swinging it because of all our preparation and video of seven of those nine returners that we talked about beforehand," head coach Butch Thompson said. "They really showed up. One thing really happened today where right off jump street they won the most pitches."
After Auburn (2-1) took the first two games of the series, the Hoosiers (1-2) were the first to score with the two-out grand slam in the top of the first and tacked one on with a sacrifice fly after a leadoff walk and double in the second. The visitors extended the lead to 8-0 with three two-out runs in the third.
The Tigers got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth when Ike Irish started the frame with a single and eventually came around on a pair of two-out hits from Kason Howell and Bryson Ware.
Zach Crotchfelt entered the game to end the third inning and silenced the Indiana bats for much of his outing, ultimately allowing two runs on three hits with one walk and four strikeouts in 3.2 innings in his Auburn debut.
Crotchfelt struck out four of the first five batters he faced and sat down seven straight to begin his Auburn career. He exited after allowing back-to-back one-out singles in the seventh, and both runs came in to score on a two-out, two-RBI double that extended Indiana's lead to 10-1.
Indiana scored its 11th run on a wild pitch in the eighth, but the Tigers got the run back on Justin Kirby's second homer of the weekend to start the bottom of the frame. Nine of Indiana's 11 runs came with two outs.
Ware finished the game 3-for-4 with a double and RBI and collected seven hits with three doubles on the weekend. Irish collected multiple hits for the second time in the series and totaled six hits, including three doubles, in his first taste of collegiate baseball.
"I have confidence that we are tracking on the right things, what we are telling our guys, and the results are going to follow suit," Thompson said. "We've come back to the park two days after a win. Tomorrow we have to come back after our first loss, so the teaching opportunity of feeling every emotion through the first weekend we're starting to experience and feel, and you want your team to keep building."
Auburn hits the road next week, beginning with a midweek matchup against North Alabama (1-2) Tuesday at 6 p.m. CT at Toyota Field in Madison, Alabama.
No. 17 Auburn falls in series finale vs. Indiana
