AUBURN, Ala. – No. 4 Auburn will remain on the Plains, hosting a super regional for the first time in program history after sweeping the NCAA Auburn Regional by blasting NC State 11-1 Sunday at Plainsman Park.
“Thankful for being able to get through this tough regional,” Auburn coach Butch Thompson said. “That was a grind for us. Never hosted a super regional before. Pretty excited about that. They fought hard, they were connected. They played a pretty solid three days for us.”
After three scoreless innings, Auburn broke open the game with seven runs in the top of fourth, loading the bases with no outs on a single and a pair of walks to chase NC State starter Dominic Fritton after 88 pitches.
Chase Fralick greeted reliever Cooper Consiglio with a single to right, scoring Lucas Steele for a 1-0 Auburn lead. One batter later, Chris Rembert slashed his third hit of the game, a single to right that brought home Eric Snow and Cade Belyeu to put the Tigers on top 3-0.
Tournament MVP Bub Terrell continued his torrid regional with a single to right that plated Fralick to make it 4-0.
“We’ve got one goal in mind,” said Terrell, who was 4-for-5 with two runs scored and two RBI. “I’ll probably think about it after the season’s over, but the job’s not finished.”
Ike Irish followed with a massive three-run home run that traveled 420 feet, sailing over the temporary seats installed beyond the visitors’ bullpen in right field to accommodate the largest three-game series crowd in program history, 22,174, including 7,373 on Sunday night.
“He hung it and I did my job. I put a barrel on it and it happened to get up,” said Irish, who expressed appreciation for the atmosphere Auburn fans created during the regional. “It was unbelievable. It’s truly amazing what this program is. It’s a testament to our family here at Auburn, the fans and the city. Auburn-Opelika, they got behind us this weekend.”
The visiting team for the second straight night, the Tigers tacked on three more in the top of the fifth thanks to back-to-back doubles by the fabulous freshman duo of Rembert and Terrell. Rembert’s fourth hit scored Fralick and Deric Fabian, then Terrell brought home Rembert to give the Tigers a 10-0 lead.
Auburn (41-18) added a run in the eighth on four consecutive walks to lead 11-0.
Auburn’s first three hitters – Rembert, Terrell and Irish – combined for 11 hits in 16 at-bats with nine RBI and five runs scored.
“It helps when you have two unbelievable freshmen hitting in front of you,” Irish said.
Starting pitcher Andreas Alvarez (3-1) delivered the best outing of his freshman season, shutting out the Wolfpack for five innings while striking out five and scattering six hits to earn the victory.
“It was special to get that start, especially with all the fans out there, they made it a great night for us,” Alvarez said. “I had the slider working really well tonight.”
Cade Fisher relieved Alvarez after the first two batters reached in the bottom of the sixth, striking out the first hitter he faced and stranding both runners. Fisher pitched the final four innings, allowing one run and striking out five to earn his second save.
“I was happy with our pitching,” Thompson said. “Alvarez has a ton of confidence. He’s got some energy in his fastball. He had his best game for us and it comes in postseason. To throw seven guys in a regional is pretty good. I tip my cap to those guys. Our offense was consistent for three days.”
NC State (35-21) avoided a shutout by scoring a run in the eighth on a sacrifice fly.
Auburn never trailed in the regional, outscoring Central Connecticut State, Stetson and NC State 28-11 to sweep its way to the first super regional in Plainsman Park next weekend when the Tigers host Coastal Carolina with dates and times expected to be announced on Monday.
“It’s going to be electric,” Irish said. “I think the fanbase is going to get behind us again.”
“We’re down to one team that’s in our way of going back to Omaha,” said Thompson, whose fourth regional title is the most in program history. “We’ll play the hottest team in college baseball. We’ve got to keep our head down and keep fighting for that consistency.”
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer