AUBURN, Ala. – After shutting out Louisiana Tech (24-11) to open the second day of action at the War Eagle Classic, Auburn softball (20-12-1) rallied in the seventh but fell a run shy to Georgia Tech (25-16) to split a Saturday doubleheader at Jane B. Moore Field.
Behind a 15-strikeout effort from Maddie Penta, Auburn shut down Louisiana Tech's offense to etch a 5-0 victory in Saturday's opener. Against the Yellow Jackets, Auburn scored two in the seventh inning to make it a one-run game, but Georgia Tech held on to claim a 10-9 win in the War Eagle Classic finale.
"It was a great battle," said head coach Mickey Dean. "Georgia Tech is one of the best home run hitting teams in the country. That's the kind of team that you can't pitch from behind in a game. We were constantly 2-0 throughout the game, and that was the difference. Our offense kept battling. Our defense played well. We'll learn from it and move on."
Icess Tresvik had a phenomenal Saturday at the plate as she went 5-for-6 with a home run, four runs scored, four RBI and five stolen bases. Anna Wohlers also turned in a strong effort with three hits, including a double and a home run. She closed the doubleheader with two RBI and two runs scored. Makayla Packer went 4-for-7 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI.
Penta delivered a two-hit performance in Saturday's opener to become just the third Tiger in program history to record 20 career shutouts. She retired the first nine batters she faced before allowing her first hit. Issuing one walk, Penta allowed only three Bulldogs to reach base in her complete-game effort. She set a season high with 15 strikeouts to improve to 11-6.
Auburn jumped out to an early lead thanks to four singles in the first inning. Nelia Peralta put the Tigers on the board with an RBI hit to right center before a Tresvik infield single to short extended the lead to 2-0. Tresvik would go on to steal three bases in the first frame, including home, to score the third run.
The 3-0 Tiger lead held until the fifth when Auburn scored twice with help of a Tresvik sacrifice fly and an Amelia Lech RBI single.
Georgia Tech used six hits, including a pair of home runs, in the first two innings to build its 5-0 lead. Auburn began its comeback bid in the home half of the second inning with a Tresvik two-run blast to center. Packer made it a two-run game in the third with an RBI single up the middle.
Both offenses continued to put up runs through the middle innings with the Yellow Jackets taking a 10-7 lead into the seventh inning. Auburn used a single and a pair of walks to load the bases with one out before Mariah Penta singled to center to cut the lead to 10-8.
Auburn traded an out for a run with a ground ball to short to make it a one-score game while moving the tying run to third base, but a great defense play up the middle robbed the Tigers of what would have been the game-tying hit, preserving the win for Georgia Tech
The Tigers close out their nine-game homestand on Wednesday with a midweek tilt versus UAB. First pitch on the SEC Network+ is set for 6 p.m. CT.
