SURVIVE AND ADVANCE: Tigers make third consecutive Regional final

Behind a pair of comeback wins, Auburn softball (34-23) survived Elimination Saturday at JoAnne Graf Field, taking down both Robert Morris (30-18) and South Florida (44-16-1) to advance to the program’s third consecutive Regional final.

SURVIVE AND ADVANCE: Tigers make third consecutive Regional finalSURVIVE AND ADVANCE: Tigers make third consecutive Regional final
  • Game 1
  • Game 2
Box Score

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Behind a pair of comeback wins, Auburn softball (34-23) survived Elimination Saturday at JoAnne Graf Field, taking down both Robert Morris (30-18) and South Florida (44-16-1) to advance to the program’s third consecutive Regional final. 

“I’m really proud of this team,” said co-head coach Chris Malveaux. “What they did today is very difficult. You come off a tough game like yesterday and there’s obviously going to be thoughts going through everyone’s mind on what today’s going to feel like. We knew we were going to have to come through a couple dog fights to get into Sunday. I’m just proud of the way we fought, the leadership and how they grinded it out and made things happen.” 

Auburn needed two come-from-behind wins on Saturday, which brings its nation-leading total to 22 on the season. 

The Tigers used five runs in the second frame to take the lead over Robert Morris before putting the game away with a six-run fifth inning to secure an 11-3 run-rule victory. Against the Bulls, the Tigers built a 3-1 lead before the South Florida scored three in the third inning to take the lead. After the Tigers tied the game in the fifth, it took extra innings yet again to decide a winner. This time, the Tigers scored three in the eighth to secure a 7-5 win. 

Abbey Smith led the team on Saturday with a 3-for-4 effort. She scored two runs and held an .857 on-base percentage across the two games. Amelia Lech and Rose Roach both went 3-for-6 at the plate. AnnaLea Adams totaled four hits on Saturday and led the team with five RBI. Nelia Peralta and KK McCrary were the other two Tigers with multi-RBI on Saturday with three each.

SJ Geurin tossed a total of nine innings of relief across Saturday’s games and earned both wins. She struck out eight and allowed just one run off eight hits and one walk. She’s now tied for eighth in Auburn single season history with 22 wins.   

AUBURN 11, ROBERT MORRIS 3

The Tigers took what was handed to them in the top of the first, loading the bases with an Adams single and back-to-back, two-out walks, but Auburn was unable to bring across an early run. RMU capitalized in the home half with a pair of hits, including a two-out double to push across a run.

Free passes in the second inning put two on for the Tigers before Auburn strung together a two-out rally to take the lead. Adams tied the game with a single to right field before McCrary and Anna Wohlers slugged back-to-back triples. 

An errant throw to third base on Wohlers’s triple allowed the senior to score and cap Auburn’s five-run frame. The triple was the fourth of the season for Wohlers, which moves her into a four-way tie for the third most hit in a single season at Auburn. 

The Colonials chipped into the lead with a pair of solo home runs in the second and third frames. RMU attempted to make it a one-run game, sending home a runner on a single to center, but Smith gunned her down to end the threat.

Auburn’s offense put up a six-spot in the fifth inning to put the game out of reach. Lech sparked the offense with a solo home run to left field, her third of the Tallahassee Regional. With Smith on via a two-out walk, Peralta legged out an infield single to keep the inning alive and allow Smith to score from second.

Adams delivered her third hit of the contest, a two-run blast to make it a 9-3 Auburn lead. It was her 10th home run of the season as she became just the fourth Auburn freshman to knocked 10 or more home runs in their debut season. 

McCrary and Wohlers drew back-to-back walks to put traffic on base for Roach, who drove in a run with a single to center. An RMU error brought in the sixth run of the frame to put Auburn in run-rule territory.

Reliver SJ Geurin gave up a hit in the bottom of the fifth but left her stranded to secure her 21st win of the season. Geruin tossed three scoreless frames in relief, scattering three hits and striking out two. Malayna Tamborra earned the start and tossed a pair of innings for the Tigers. 

AUBURN 7, SOUTH FLORIDA 5

Auburn struck first in Saturday’s nightcap as McCrary slugged a two-out, solo home run in the top of the first to get Auburn on the board. She became the fourth different Tiger to hit double-digit home runs in 2025. The Bulls countered in the home half as USF turned a leadoff walk into to a run with the help of a sacrifice fly. 

Roach led off the second inning with a single through the left side with Lech following with a walk. Roach and pinch runner Georgia Lessmann both tagged up on a fly ball to right field to put two in scoring position for Aubrie Lisenby. Lisenby singled to third base to plate a run to put the Tigers in front 2-1. 

After Smith loaded the bases with a bunt single, Peralta made it a 3-1 Tiger lead as she picked up an RBI with a sacrifice fly to center. 

Icess Tresvik held the Bulls hitless until the third inning as a walk, single up the middle and wild pitch put two in scoring position with no outs. Olivia Elliott tied the game with a two-run single up the middle and forced the Tigers to bring in Geurin in relief. The left-hander retired the first two Bulls she faced, but a two-out single scored the go-ahead run in for USF.  

After trading a scoreless fourth, Auburn locked the game up in the fifth with a two-out rally. A walk and Lech single put runners on the corners for the Tigers. Tresvik delivered the clutch hit with a single through the right side to lock the game up at 4-4. 

The two squads traded scoreless sixth and seventh innings to force extra innings yet again. Auburn didn’t waste time loading the bases with one out in the eighth with singles from Lech, Lisenby and Smith. Peralta delivered the go-ahead hit with a single up the middle before Adams followed with a two-run single to build a 7-4 lead for the Tigers. 

South Florida led off bottom of the eight with a solo home run from Josie Foreman to make it a two-run game, but Geurin retired the next three batters in order to send the Tigers into Sunday’s finale. She matched her season high with six strikeouts in the contest and improved to 22-11 in the circle.

UP NEXT

Auburn faces (5) Florida State on Sunday at 11 a.m. CT. The game will be available on ESPN+. Any additional television coverage will be announced following the conclusion of all of Saturday’s postseason contests. The Tigers will have to defeat the Seminoles twice on Sunday to advance to the Super Regional round.