JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Defensive miscues plagued Auburn softball (0-1) as the Tigers fell to North Florida (1-0) in five innings, 11-3, in the season opener Thursday evening at the UNF Softball Complex.
Auburn’s defense committed four errors, leading to four unearned runs.
“To be honest, it was a shocker,” said co-head coach Chris Malveaux. “But if you watched things unfold, we had a hard time responding to adversity. We didn’t make plays early on and stumbled a little bit. You could see the youth of this team right away. We had a very difficult time rebounding. We needed a couple of people to step up, rest the team and wake everyone up. It was tough to get that today. Nobody wants to go through that, but hopefully this fires everyone up. This team isn’t going to fold over. We’ve got a full weekend ahead of us to pick up some good wins.”
Returning from injury, redshirt sophomore Kyla Stroud went 2-for-3 at the plate with a triple and two RBI. In her Auburn debut, senior Destiny Rodriguez also turned in 2-for-3 performance. Kylie Brockman picked up an RBI for the Tigers with a single in the third inning.
In the circle, Abby Herndon (0-1) made her collegiate debut as she earned the start in the circle. Herndon went 2.1 innings and struck out a pair. Ella Harrison also made her Auburn debut, tossing 1.2 relief innings. Harrison struck out a pair.
North Florida came out aggressive as two singles and a pair of stolen bases put two Ospreys in scoring position. A triple to right field put the Ospreys on the board. After loading the bases with a hit by pitch, UNF took advantage with a walk and a one-out sacrifice fly to left center to extend its lead to 4-0 after the first inning.
Auburn struggled to break through in the first two frames, stranding five Tigers. The third inning felt like a repeat performance after two quick outs, but The Tiger offense came alive with a rally.
With freshman Haven Roebuck on with a walk, sophomore Kylie Shaw singled through the right side to move Roebuck into scoring position. Stroud drove in the first runs of the 2026 season. Her perfectly placed ball in right field fell for a base-clearing triple to cut the UNF lead in half. Kylie Brockman followed with a single through the right side to make it a one-run game.
Errors continued to haunt the Tigers through the second half of the game as three additional Auburn miscues mounted to seven total runs in the third and fourth innings for North Florida, upping the score to 11-3.
The Tigers needed one run in the top of the fifth to keep the game alive, but went down in order.
GAME NOTES
- Thursday marked Auburn’s first true road game to open a season since facing Troy to open the 2014 campaign on Feb. 6. That contest ended in a 5-5 tie.
- Haven Roebuck (3B), Kylie Shaw (RF), Kyla Stroud (DP) and Abby Herndon (P) all made the first starts of their collegiate careers.
- McKaela Walker (LF), Destiny Rodriguez (2B) and Alyssa Hasting (SS) all made their first starts in an Auburn uniform.
- Ella Harrison made her Auburn debut in a relief pitching appearance while Delaney Aumua and Ava Ratliff made their first collegiate appearances.
- Kyla Stroud recorded her first base hit since March 9, 2025, at Mississippi State with a single in the second inning.
- Stroud slugged the first triple of her career in the top of the third, recording the first multi-hit game of her career. Stroud drove in two runs off her third-inning triple to pick up the second multi-RBI game of her career.
- Right fielder Kylie Shaw recorded the first base hit of her collegiate career with a single in the third inning.
- Shortstop Alyssa Hastings drew a walk in the third inning, extending her on-base streak to 35 consecutive games. The streak began on March 18, 2025.
- Left fielder McKaela Walker set a career high, drawing three walks in Thursday’s contest.
- Destiny Rodriguez knocked a pair of singles in her Auburn debut, recording the 14th multi-hit game of her career.
UP NEXT
Auburn continues its Florida road swing with five games at the NFCA Leadoff Classic at the Eddie C. Moore Complex in Clearwater, Florida. The Tigers open the tournament on Friday against Notre Dame and Michigan State. Action is slated to begin at 4 p.m. CT. Both games are available to stream for free on GameChanger.
BACK AT HOME
Opening Weekend on the Plains is set for Feb. 12-15 as the Tigers host the War Eagle Classic. The tournament begins on Feb. 12 as the Tigers take on Illinois at 5 p.m. CT on the SEC Network+. Auburn softball will honor the late Mike “Helmet Guy” Cooper as part of Thursday’s opener. Helemt Guy mini-helmets will be available for fans while supplies last.