LEXINGTON, Ky. – In a back-and-forth game attended by hundreds of orange-clad Tiger fans in town for March Madness, No. 16 Auburn rallied for two ninth-inning runs to defeat No. 24 Kentucky 8-7 Friday at Kentucky Proud Park.
“That was a team win,” head coach Butch Thompson said. “Start to finish, we were engaged and played as hard as we could. We found a way to somehow win this ballgame. We had some big moments, some big swings.”
Trailing 7-6 with two outs to work with, Auburn (18-4, 3-1 SEC) put the tying run on base when Cooper McMurray beat the shift with a one-out single through the left side. Pinch-runner Bristol Carter stole second and scored to tie the game on Chase Fralick’s two-out double to left.
“I was sitting on a breaking ball, he threw me one and I got a good enough swing on it to get one to fall,” Fralick said. “That whole game was up and down. They punched us and we punched them. It was a big boxing match, and we got the last one.”
Ike Irish popped up on the next pitch, but Wildcats shortstop Tyler Bell dropped it, allowing pinch-runner Cole Edwards to score the go-ahead run from second.
After taking the lead in the top of the inning, closer Ryan Hetzler set down the Wildcats (14-6, 1-3 SEC) in order to earn his second Southeastern Conference save in as many appearances.
“I like all the pressure,” said Hetzler, whose season ERA remains at 0.00. “I think pressure is a privilege. It’s great to be out there and be trusted with that. I know where I’m going to throw it, and I know if I can make that pitch, they’re not going to hit it or they’re not going to hit it well.”
Auburn manufactured a run in the top of the first when leadoff batter Eric Snow was hit by a pitch, advanced to second on a grounder, went to third on a wild pitch and scored on Bub Terrell’s sacrifice fly for a 1-0 lead.
Lucas Steele led off the second inning with his third home run in the past four games to put Auburn ahead 2-0.
Kentucky tied the score with two runs in the bottom of the second on three consecutive hits and a sacrifice fly off Auburn starting pitcher Samuel Dutton.
The Tigers reclaimed a 3-2 lead in the top of the third, again without the benefit of a base hit, when McMurray led off with a walk, moved to second on a walk and to third on a hit batter before scoring on Steele’s sac fly.
The Wildcats answered with two runs on three hits in the bottom of the third to lead 4-3.
In the bottom of the fourth, center fielder Cade Belyeu kept the Tigers within a run by throwing out a runner trying to score from second on a single.
Dutton finished strongly, recording two called third strikes during a scoreless fifth inning, ending with four strikeouts, no walks and four earned runs allowed in 5.0 innings.
Auburn rallied for three runs in the top of the sixth off Kentucky reliever Jackson Nove, whose pitches hit Steele and Belyeu. Eric Guevara doubled down the left-field line to score Steele with the tying run. Snow followed with a two-run double to center, plating Belyeu and Guevara for a 6-4 Auburn lead.
Kentucky’s Devin Burkes homered off Auburn reliever Jett Johnston in the bottom of the sixth to trim the Tigers’ lead to 6-5. Carson Myers relieved Johnston with one out and a runner on second, and the Wildcats tied the score at 6-6 on Griffin Cameron’s RBI single to center.
After Nove retired the Tigers in order in the top of the seventh, Kentucky took a 7-6 lead in the bottom of the inning with three singles off Auburn’s fourth pitcher, John Armstrong, who struck out two before giving way to Parker Carson, who induced a grounder to short to strand two runners.
Auburn put the leadoff man on base in the top of the eighth when Deric Fabian was hit by a pitch, the Tigers’ fifth hit batter of the game, but a popup to short and a double-play ended the inning.
Carlson (2-1), who ultimately earned the victory, retired Kentucky in order in the bottom of the eighth to set the table to the dramatic ninth inning.
Seeking to win its eighth consecutive series and fourth straight SEC series dating to last season, Auburn will start Cade Fisher in the second game of the series Saturday at 1 p.m. CT.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer