AUBURN, Ala. – Behind four first-inning runs from the offense and a 7.0-inning shutout from Samuel Dutton, No. 14 Auburn run-ruled No. 8 Alabama 10-0 in seven innings in the series opener Friday night.
“This is as good as this team’s played,” head coach Butch Thompson said. “We tried to simplify practice the last two days, just try to get in the middle of the field and return the energy where it’s coming from back toward the mound. The guys showed up. They were ready to play.”
The game was played in front of a record crowd of 6,729 at Plainsman Park, surpassing the previous mark set on Opening Night by more than 1,000 fans.
“That's the most charged, the most well-rounded, the richest environment that I’ve seen for Auburn baseball since I’ve been here,” Thompson added. “It Just felt like another level to me. We played a great team, played our rival, had a little skid of not getting the result we wanted the last few days and our people showed up like that, it was amazing.”
Dutton’s complete game was the first by an Auburn pitcher since 2023, and his 7.0 innings matched a career high from his first SEC start vs. Vanderbilt. The senior right hander faced just three batters over the minimum, allowing two hits and two walks while striking out six.
“It feels awesome, but the best thing about this whole night was the fans that showed out today and the atmosphere they brought,” Dutton said. “My mindset was to keep attacking those hitters. I had faith in my offense that they were going to get those runs and they did. The biggest thing is just getting quick outs and filling up the strike zone.”
Paced by a season-high four hits and two doubles from Chase Fralick, the offense collected 15 hits in the contest, including a season-high six doubles. Five players collected multiple hits in the game.
“It was incredible,” Fralick said. “We got off to a good start, which really helped the fans, and then we just kept rolling with it. I think that’s a pretty good example of how our lineup can go to work. That was pretty great.”
Auburn (21-9, 5-5 SEC) set the tone from the start, scoring four runs on five hits and batting around in the first inning. Three of the four runs came with two outs. Cooper McMurray got the scoring started with a RBI single to left field, and Lucas Steele came through with a two-RBI double with two outs and two strikes to extend the inning. Bristol Carter then capped off the scoring with a RBI single to right.
The Tigers continued their fast start as Eric Snow and Chris Rembert traded doubles to start the second inning before Ike Irish extended the lead to 6-0 with a single to center that left the bat at 110 miles per hour.
Dutton faced the minimum in the first three innings thanks to a first-inning double play before retiring the Crimson Tide in order with clean second and third frames, striking out a pair in the latter.
It wasn’t until there were two outs in the top of the fourth inning when Alabama (26-5, 6-4 SEC) recorded its first hit of the game, at which point Auburn had already turned in 10.
Alabama reliever Coulson Buchanan settled the game in the third and fourth innings, but the Tigers got to the right hander in his fourth inning of work in the fifth. Carter started the inning with a double and Fralick followed with a single before Deric Fabian drew a walk to lead the bases. With Buchanan out of the game, Snow singled through the right side to make it a seven-run game, and Rembert ripped one through the left side to score two more.
Dutton went back to work and sat Alabama down in order with a pair of strikeouts in the sixth, and Fralick delivered his fourth hit and second double of the game to make it 10-0 in the home half of the inning.
The Crimson Tide put just their second baserunner of the game in scoring position with a one-out double in the seventh, but Dutton retired the next two batters on a strikeout and flyout to end the game.
The Tigers and Crimson Tide will conclude the three-game series with a Saturday doubleheader. Game one is scheduled for 2 p.m. CT and game two will begin at 7 p.m.