Auburn’s run in the 2023 Southeastern Conference Baseball tournament ended Thursday with an 7-4 loss against rival Alabama at the Hoover Met.
Alabama jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first when Tommy Seidl hit a home run on a 1-0 count off Tigers’ starting pitcher Konner Copeland. Seidl finished the game 3-3 before getting pulled for a pinch runner after a fourth-inning RBI single. He also had a double in the third.
Auburn got a run back in the second on a Brody Wortham two-out single. Auburn was tied 1-1 with Alabama entering the third inning. Alabama regained the lead on Williamson’s sac fly.
Alabama went up 5-1 in the fourth. Caden Rose, Seidl, and Andrew Pinckney had RBIs to push the Tide to a 5-1 lead versus Auburn in the fourth.
Bryson Ware’s 24th home run of the season broke Auburn’s single-season record set in 2010 by Hunter Morris for the most in Tiger baseball history. Ware also had a two-run home run in the ninth inning in the 6-4 loss against Vanderbilt that thrust Auburn into the loser’s bracket.
Freshman Ike Irish scored on a wild pitch by Garrett McMillan with two outs in the sixth. The wild pitch was a rare mistake for McMillan. who finished the contest with eight strikeouts for the win. McMillian allowed three runs on five hits, three walks, and the wild pitch.
Alabama matched Auburn with two runs in the bottom half of the sixth. Williamson’s single scored Jim Jarvis putting Alabama ahead 7-3.
Auburn scored a run in the ninth inning when Cole Foster’s single drove in Chris Stanfield. Auburn’s chances ended when MuMurray popped out. The loss sends the Tigers back to the Plains to wait for their draw in the NCAA Tournament.
Auburn coach Butch Thompson told reporters he believed the Tigers did enough before the tournament to host an NCAA Regional. He was cautious in his optimism after Auburn defeated Missouri in the opening round at Hoover Met. D1 Baseball and Baseball America both have projections in agreeance with Thompson’s assessment of his team.
D1 Baseball predicted Auburn would get a 10th seed in the NCAA tournament before Thursday’s game against Alabama. The Tigers would host SWAC school Alabama State, Troy, and Oklahoma State at Plainsman Park. Baseball America had as 12th seed hosting Troy, Texas, and Fairfield.
