KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 5 Auburn received its sixth quality start from Samuel Dutton to defeat No. 7 Tennessee, 6-1, in game one Saturday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
“Dutton has been so consistent for us,” head coach Butch Thompson said. “Not only did he do another amazing job, but he got us into the seventh inning and what it allowed us to do was go straight to (Ryan) Hetzler. You have a chance to win at the end of the first game with Dutton and Hetzler throwing against a top-10 team and you do not walk a batter. That gives you a good chance to win on the road.”
Game two began shortly after the conclusion of game one, but nine innings wasn’t enough to decide it and the game went into a delay with the score tied, 4-4, in the top of the 10th inning.
“I’m impressed by both ball clubs,” Thompson added. “This has been challenging weather from the start. Both teams are just fighting for every pitch. I’m really impressed with the resiliency of our guys, even in game two.”
Game two will resume Sunday at 12 p.m. CT with a 1-0 count and Ike Irish at the plate. The series finale will begin approximately 45 minutes after the conclusion of game two and will be seven innings.
GAME ONE
The teams played a half inning Friday before going into a delay of more than 14 hours and resuming at 10:35 a.m. CT Saturday. Prior to the suspension, Irish gave Auburn (32-14, 12-10 SEC) a lead with a two-run home run in the top of the first. The home run was Irish’s team-best 12th of the season, including his ninth of league play.
A pair of bunt singles from Chris Rembert and Cade Belyeu started the third inning, and the Tigers added to the advantage as Irish laced a RBI single thru the left side.
Dutton (6-2) retired the first nine batters he faced with four strikeouts the first time through the order and kept his strong start going by retiring the next four Volunteers with two more strikeouts. Tennessee (36-10, 13-9 SEC) got its first baserunner of the game with a one-out single in the fifth, but the senior got out of the inning unscathed with a strikeout and flyout.
Cooper McMurray hit the first pitch he saw from reliver Tegan Kuhns well over the wall down the left field line to extend Auburn’s lead to 4-0. The home run was McMurray’s 10th of the season, making him the fourth player in program history to hit 10 or more home runs in three straight seasons.
Dutton retired 20 of the first 22 batters he faced, but Tennessee got on the scoreboard with back-to-back two-out doubles to make it a 4-1 game in the seventh. Ryan Hetzler entered with the runner in scoring position and struck out right fielder Reese Chapman on three pitches to end the inning.
The Tigers got the run right back as Rembert started the eighth inning with a solo homer to right field. It was the team’s third homer of the game and the freshman’s seventh of the season, including his fourth of conference play.
Hetzler faced the minimum in the eighth thanks to an inning-ended double play, and Auburn loaded the bases on two hit batters and a walk in the ninth before adding an insurance run on a wild pitch.
Hetzler worked around a one-out single in the ninth to earn his seventh save of the season, including his sixth of SEC play.
GAME TWO
Similar to game one, Auburn jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first as Rembert started the game with a double and scored on a RBI single from Irish. The junior moved up a ground ball to the right side and stole third before scoring a two-out single from Lucas Steele.
Making his second start, Cam Tilly held Tennessee scoreless in the first two frames, but a double and back-to-back walks loaded the bases with one out in the third. The Volunteers tied the game with Hunter Ensley’s two-run single to right center.
The Tigers threatened to answer after Tennessee tied the game by loading the bases with two walks and a single in the fourth, but a failed safety squeeze and a strikeout kept the game tied, 2-2.
Auburn reclaimed the lead as Irish reached for the third time in the game, this time on a throwing error. He stole second and third before scoring on a wild pitch to take a 3-2 lead.
Tennessee put two aboard with one out on a double and single in the fifth, but Carson Myers buckled down with back-to-back strikeouts to maintain the one-run lead.
With two outs in the sixth, Tennessee sent a runner from second on a single to right field, but Irish threw out the potential tying run at the plate.
The Volunteers again threatened with back-to-back singles to start the seventh, ending Myers outing at 3.1 innings pitched with no walks and six strikeouts. John Armstrong entered in relief and a sacrifice fly to left field scored the tying run from third. Armstrong issued a two-out walk and a balk moved both runners into scoring position, but the senior struck out Chapman looking to keep the game tied.
Two more Tennessee batters reached on a leadoff single and two-out walk in the eighth, but Parker Carlson entered in relief of Armstrong and struck out three-hole hitter Andrew Fischer on three pitches to strand them both.
Eric Guevara started the ninth inning with a double to right field, and the Tigers reclaimed the lead for the second time as pinch runner Deric Fabian scored on a RBI single from Chase Fralick. Fabian broke for third on the pitch and easily scored as the pitch found space down the right field line.
Tennessee answered back with a one-out home run to tie the game in the ninth. Carlson recorded the last two outs to send the game to extra innings, but the game was put into a delay for the second straight day after one pitch was delivered in the 10th.