In the second game of the series, the No. 20-ranked Auburn Tigers fell to the Old Dominion Monarchs, 11-9, at Plainsman Park. With the loss, the Tigers are now 1-1 in the series.
Auburn's starting pitcher, Cade Fisher, gave up a single on the first at-bat against the Monarchs. However, Fisher followed up with three consecutive strikeouts to end the top of the first. Old Dominion started power lefty Dylan Brown on the mound, who held Auburn’s Eric Snow to a flyout. Brown struck out Cooper McMurray on a full-count pitch, and Florida native Deric Fabian lined out to give Old Dominion its third out of the inning.
Fisher gave up a walk and a single in the second inning, advancing two Old Dominion players to first and third. Auburn executed a well-timed double play, but Old Dominion’s Kainen Jorge was able to score, making it 1-0. Fisher struck out the next batter to end the top half of the inning. Brown quickly struck out the first Auburn batter in the bottom of the second. Chris Rembert then hit a double to left field, followed by Ike Irish’s double to left-center, allowing Rembert to score and tying the game at 1-1. Brown closed out the inning with his fourth strikeout.
Auburn made a pitching change to Cam Tilly in the third. Tilly had a clean inning, getting three quick outs. Auburn’s offense came alive in the bottom of the inning. After Cole Edwards was hit by a pitch and Eric Snow singled, Cooper McMurray singled to right field, loading the bases. Fabian grounded out, but Edwards scored to make it 2-1. Cade Belyeu then hit a single, allowing both McMurray and Snow to score, giving Auburn a 4-1 lead. Despite his struggles, Brown finished the inning with his fifth strikeout.
Tilly started the fourth with a strikeout but allowed a single to Jorge, who later scored, narrowing Old Dominion’s deficit to 4-2. Brown’s pitching began to falter in the bottom of the inning. He allowed a pitch that hit Ike Irish, who later stole second base. After a walk to another Auburn batter, Snow hit a double, scoring Johnston and Irish, extending Auburn's lead to 6-2. McMurray followed with a two-run homer to score Snow, pushing Auburn's lead to 8-2. Deric Fabian and Cade Belyeu each singled and Fabian was able to score making the score 9-2 but Auburn’s momentum stalled when Old Dominion made a pitching change to Frankie Wright.
The fifth inning was a quiet one, with no hits or runs for either team.
In the sixth, Auburn replaced Tilly with Dylan Watts. Old Dominion's Jorge recorded the team's only hit of the inning, while Auburn's Chase Fralick also had a hit. Watts struck out two batters, but neither team could capitalize further offensively.
Old Dominion’s comeback began in the seventh inning. The Monarchs strung together multiple hits, with Jack Slater, Tahraun Hammond, Jorge, Zach Leite, and Efrain Morales all scoring to trim Auburn’s lead to 9-7. Auburn made another pitching change to Hayden Murphy. Old Dominion switched pitchers twice, first to Alex Hunt, then to Marco Levari. Auburn went scoreless in the bottom of the seventh.
In the eighth, Auburn replaced pitcher Parker Carlson with Graves. Auburn also made a change behind the plate, replacing Ike Irish with Cale Stricklin. Old Dominion’s Luke Waters singled, driving in Hammond, making it 9-8. Auburn switched pitchers again to Carlson, but the Monarchs continued to surge. Jorge hit a three-run homer, scoring Waters and Scotty Young, as Old Dominion took an 11-9 lead. In the bottom of the eighth, Auburn couldn’t respond, as Monarchs’ pitchers Bailey Matela and Kellen Davis combined to keep the Tigers from scoring.
Old Dominion was held scoreless in the top of the ninth. Auburn came up for its final at-bat but couldn’t overcome the two-run deficit, losing the game 11-9.
The final game of the series is set for Sunday, March 9, at 2 p.m. CT at Plainsman Park. The game will also feature Aubie’s Kids Club Day.
