No. 11 Auburn baseball found itself back in the win column, taking two out of three games against No. 15 Arkansas at Plainsman Park this weekend.
The series win marked Auburn’s first over the Razorbacks since 2017.
Auburn cruised to a 10-2 win in the series-opener on Thursday, dropped a 3-2 ballgame on Saturday and controlled Sunday’s rubber match 8-3 to clinch the series.
Here is a recap of the Tigers’ weekend:
Game one
Auburn used an all-around stellar performance to take control of the series with a 10-2 win on Thursday night.
In his first weekend start of the season, Andreas Alvarez matched a career high 10 strikeouts, holding Arkansas to one run on six hits in as many innings tossed.
All nine Tigers in the lineup tallied a hit, as they recorded more hits (13) on Thursday than they did in the entire series against Alabama a week ago.
Chris Rembert, Bub Terrell and Eric Guevara combined for a 7-for-12 mark with five runs scored.
Guevara tallied his fifth home run of the season, reaching in all four of his plate appearances with a trio of base knocks.
Arkansas’ Ryder Helfrick blasted a one-out homer to start the scoring in the fourth, and two more Razorbacks reached base with one out in the frame. However, Alvarez buckled down for a pair of strikeouts to minimize the damage.
Bub Terrell led off the home half of the inning with a double to left field, and a pair of walks loaded the bases for Ethan Bingaman, who flied out to left field, evening the score at one.
Auburn used a big fifth inning to break open the game, scoring seven runs on six hits with one stranded. The first five batters of the inning reached on three hits and a pair of walks. Chase Fralick tallied his 25th RBI of the season with a double to right center, and Guevara singled to left, scoring another. Bingaman and Mason McCraine tallied consecutive two-strike singles before Brandon McCraine capped things off with another RBI single through the middle.
Arkansas loaded the bases with one out in the sixth, but once more, Alvarez minimized the damage with a strikeout and groundout to end the inning.
LJ Cormier relieved Alvarez for the final three frames, fanning five to earn his first career save.
Guevara blasted his home run to make it 9-1 in the sixth, and Rembert drove in Bristol Carter on a double to left field to cap off Auburn’s scoring in the eighth.
Game two
Surging ahead with a pair of runs across the first two frames, Auburn ultimately fell 3-2 on Saturday, forcing a Sunday rubber match for the series.
The Tigers led 2-0 for the first six innings before Arkansas’ Helfrick blasted a solo shot to cut into Auburn’s lead. Two innings later, he barreled a go-ahead two-run shot, which Auburn could not overcome.
Auburn lefty Jake Marciano was electric once again, holding the Razorbacks to one run on four hits with seven strikeouts in as many innings. It was his third start of the season in which he allowed one run or less in seven innings of work.
Auburn struck first in its half of the opening frame as Rembert singled through the right side, scoring Bristol Carter, who reached on an error to lead off the frame.
The Tigers added another run in the second as Bingaman drove in Guevara after a leadoff double in the second. Guevara’s double was his fourth hit of the series, and Bingaman’s RBI was his fourth.
The Razorbacks threatened in the second by loading the bases with one out. Marciano escaped the inning unscathed with a flyout and an inning-ending groundout. He then retired nine of the next 10 batters he faced in the third through fifth innings.
After the sixth inning Arkansas home run, Marciano retired the final six batters he faced before handing it over to Jett Johnston, who gave up a pair on the aforementioned go-ahead home run from Helfrick.
Game three
Auburn fell behind 3-0 in the early goings, but tallied eight unanswered runs to clinch the series in Sunday’s rubber match, 8-3.
Alex Petrovic toed the rubber for Auburn, giving up three runs in the second inning, but buckled down for four straight innings where he faced the minimum, improving to 5-1 on the season.
Jackson Sanders made his first appearance from the bullpen this season and earned the save with four scoreless innings, striking out eight of the 13 batters he faced.
With Arkansas scoring a trio of runs in the second on a bases-loaded groundout and an RBI single, Auburn responded with as many runs in its half of the inning. Brandon McCraine got the scoring started with a two-RBI double, and a Todd Clay groundout scored another.
Auburn’s offense continued to surge, scoring in four of five innings from the second to the sixth.
Bingaman tallied an RBI double before Brandon McCraine singled to right field for a pair of runs in the third.
Terrell blasted his sixth home run of the season and second this week to add another in the fifth.
Carter reached on a walk, stole second, and advanced to third on a wild pitch before he scored on Rembert’s RBI groundout in the sixth before Fralick blasted his sixth homer of the year to cap off Auburn’s scoring efforts in the contest.
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