AUBURN, Ala. – The only program in college baseball to earn a top four national seed in the 2025 and 2026 NCAA tournaments, Auburn earned the No. 4 national seed Monday and learned it will welcome UCF, NC State and Milwaukee to the Plains this weekend.
“It’s been a pretty good level of consistency,” Auburn coach Butch Thompson said. “I’m thankful for our administration, our fans and nobody more than our players and our coaches. There are some more doors we can knock down. Hopefully there’s still some hunger, appreciation and thankfulness, understanding that this is pretty neat in our program’s history.
“A lot of people have stepped up to the plate to create that, but then still an urgency, a fight and a desire to keep trying to find more and do something the program hasn’t done before,” Thompson added. “It’s an opportunity and we’re looking forward to it.”
Auburn’s No. 4 national seed ties the 2025 and 2003 teams for the highest postseason seeding in program history.
The regional appearance is the Tigers’ 26th all-time, including the seventh under Thompson in the past nine postseasons. Auburn is 54-35 in regional play, including 14-4 under the 11th-year head coach.
The top seed in the regional, Auburn will take on No. 4 seed Milwaukee Friday at 12 p.m. CT on ESPN+. ESPN has ultimate control of game times and has slated Auburn in the first game of the regional. Also included in the field are No. 2 seed UCF and No. 3 seed NC State, which will play on Friday at 5 p.m.
“It’s going to be three really good teams,” Thompson said. “Everybody’s either hot, Power Four, done it before, been there before, and we’ve got to play some good baseball.”
The Auburn Regional is paired with the Lincoln Regional, which features No. 13 national seed Nebraska, Ole Miss, Arizona State and South Dakota State. The regional winners will advance to next week’s super regional.
Auburn and North Carolina are the only programs to host a regional four of the past five seasons.
“It’s awesome being able to be in front of these Auburn fans,” sophomore pitcher Andreas Alvarez said. “Being able to compete in front of our people, it’s going to be awesome.”
“The fans are awesome here,” junior third baseman Eric Guevara said. “The Auburn family always shows up.”
Below is information the three teams traveling to Plainsman Park, tickets and expanded seating for the Auburn Regional, and more.
AUBURN REGIONAL TEAM INFORMATION
No. 1 seed Auburn
Record: 38-19, 17-13 SEC
RPI: No. 3
SOS: 1
No. 2 seed UCF
Record: 31-21, 19-11 Big 12
RPI: No. 36
SOS: No. 21
All-time series: Auburn leads, 7-5
No. 3 seed NC State
Record: 32-22, 14-16 ACC
RPI: No. 51
SOS: No. 34
All-time series: Auburn leads, 3-1
No. 4 seed Milwaukee
Record: 25-3, 14-10 Horizon
RPI: No. 238
SOS: No. 278
All-time series: First matchup
EXPANDED SEATING AT PLAINSMAN PARK
In order to expand Plainsman Park capacity to enable as many fans as possible to watch the Auburn Regional, three expanded seating options are being introduced.
Atop the YETI Yard will be a new multi-tiered terrace featuring 320 reserved chairback seats with a general admission standing terrace above, designed to accommodate approximately 200 additional fans. Additionally, chairs will be pre-placed throughout the YETI Yard terrace to maximize seating capacity, providing general admission seating opportunities for approximately 800 fans on a first-come, first-served basis.
In addition to the normal general admission tables and chairs, the Plainsman Patio will also feature a five-tiered structure with 48 reserved chairback seats, including access to the new Donahue Club, located next to the Donaldson Hitting Lab. Atop the reserved seating structure will be two tiers of general admission standing terrace, available on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Back Forty located in right field has also been expanded with three additional standing terraces, providing general admission access for approximately 1,000 students and fans. Outfield general admission tickets are discounted and do not provide ballpark access.
PLAINSMAN PLAZA
Plainsman Plaza will be back for postseason at Plainsman Park. The plaza will open beginning Friday and will be open throughout the weekend. The space will feature food trucks, inflatables, live music, a large video screen and more.
Plainsman Plaza will open Friday at 10 a.m., two hours prior to first pitch, and will close at the conclusion of game one. In order to prepare for the pregame festivities, Donahue Drive from Samford Avenue to Heisman Drive will close at 8:30 a.m.
For Saturday and Sunday, the Plaza will reopen at noon and remain open through the sixth inning of game one or 4 p.m., whichever is earlier. At that time, the plaza will open for ticket holders of the day’s second session.
Once capacity within Plainsman Plaza is reached, entry will be paused until Plainsman Park gates open for the next game. Guests who have been admitted into Plainsman Plaza will be given first access to Plainsman Park when gates open. Access via other stadium gates will follow.
TICKET INFORMATION
Currently, all reserved tickets for the regional are sold out. General admission all-session tickets will go on sale at AUBTIX.com beginning at 1:30 p.m. Tickets are $90 for ballpark general admission and $70 for outfield general admission. If general admission ticket inventory remains, single-session tickets will go on sale Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. CT.
Additional tickets may become available for purchase on gameday based on the participating teams' needs and stadium capacity. If participating teams return tickets, they would be made available for purchase on-line by mid-morning on gamedays. There is no guarantee teams will return tickets for sale.
Limited numbers of tickets may become available for purchase at the gates based on stadium capacity. If any tickets become available, they will be sold in person at Plainsman Park on a first come, first serve basis around first pitch.
PARKING INFORMATION
Parking passes for the Neville Arena, coliseum and athletics complex lots are available for purchase at AUBTIX.com.