April 12, 2005

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The 23rd-ranked Auburn baseball team scored seven runs in the last three innings to pull away for a 12-6 win over Samford at Joe Lee Griffin Field Tuesday night.

"I thought we did a good job offensively, and with the exception of one mistake defensively, we played well," Samford Head Coach Casey Dunn said. "We just didn't pitch. But, I thought we played hard and had a chance to do some things early."

For Samford (9-21), John Morgan went 3-for-5 with two RBI. Matt Alling went 2-for-5 with two RBI, and Bear Burnett was 2-for-4 with an RBI in the game. Michael Neimkin (1-2) took the loss on the mound, pitching 2.2 innings, giving up six runs in six hits. Burnett started the game on the mound for the Bulldogs. Burnett pitched 4.0 innings, surrendering three runs on six hits.

"I was pleased with Bear's (Burnett) outing," Dunn said. "It was his first start, and by far the longest he has gone. I thought he competed well. And, Michael (Neimkin) did fine the first time through the order."

Auburn (23-13) was led at the plate by Russell Dixon, going 3-for-6 with an RBI., and Jeff Boutwell, going 3-for-4 with an RBI. John Madden (5-0) picked up the win on the mound. He pitched 2.1 innings, giving up a run on five hits. Michael Nix picked up his eighth save of the season. Nix tossed 2.1 innings, surrendering just one hit.

After Auburn took an early 2-0 lead, Samford came back with two runs in the fourth inning and three in the fifth to take a 5-3 lead. Alling doubled down the right-field line to drive in Morgan for Samford's first run of the game in the fourth inning. Burnett then singled to right field to drive in Alling.

In the fifth inning, Morgan singled to drive in Trey Moody to tie the game at 3-3. Alling then reached on a fielder's choice to drive in Bill Whitehead for a 4-3 Samford lead. The inning's final run scored when Garrett Rice singled to score Daniel Williams.

After Auburn tied the game with two runs in the sixth inning, the Tigers took control of the game with four runs in the top of the seventh. Bruce Edwards singled down the right-field line to drive in Josh Donaldson and Dixon for the first two runs of the inning. Clete Thomas then hit a sacrifice fly to center field to score Edwards for an 8-5 Auburn lead. Joey Huskins then singled up the middle to score Tyler Johnstone for a 9-5 Tiger lead.

Samford plated a run in the bottom of the seventh when Morgan singled up the middle to drive in Whitehead to cut the Auburn lead to 9-6. Auburn added two runs in the eighth inning and one more in the ninth to make the final score 12-6.

Samford will return to action on Wednesday when the Bulldogs play at Mississippi State. The first pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. from Starkville, Miss. The game can be heard locally on WVSU-FM 91.1, or worldwide on the internet at www.samfordsports.com or www.al.com/wvsu.