AUBURN, Ala. – The Samford baseball team battled the 17
th-ranked Auburn Tigers before dropping a 4-1 pitcher's duel Tuesday evening at Plainsman Park.
With the loss, Samford falls to 15-15 on the season. Auburn improves to 23-10 with the win.
Samford was led at the plate by
Stephen Klein, going 2-for-2 for the night.
Graham Dvorak and
Andrew Bennett also had a hit each for the Bulldogs.
Mason McCormack (0-1) pitched 1.0 inning in relief, giving up one run on one hit to take the loss on the mound for Samford.
Will Lynch started the game, tossing 4.0 innings, allowing just one run on three hits.
Brody Westbrooks,
Blake Bortak,
Timmy Watkins and
Jacob Newman also saw time on the mound for Samford.
For Auburn, Brody Moore went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI. Kason Howell also had two hits for the Tigers. Mason Barnett (2-1) pitched 5.0 innings, giving up one run on three hits to earn the win for the Tigers. Jordan Armstrong pitched the final 2.0 innings to pick up his first save of the season.
Samford jumped on top first with a run in the top of the first inning. With the bases loaded,
Garrett Howe scored from third base when
Kaden Dreier grounded into a double play for a 1-0 Samford lead.
Auburn tied the score with a run in the bottom of the third inning. Cam Hill singled to right field to drive in Howell to knot the score at 1-1.
The Tigers took the lead at 2-1 with a run in the bottom of the fifth inning. Moore singled to right field to drive in Jake Wyandt to give Auburn the lead.
Auburn added to its lead with a run in the bottom of the seventh inning. Howell scored from third base on a ground out by Moore for a 3-1 Tiger lead. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Bobby Pierce homered to left field to push the Auburn lead to 4-1.
Samford will play a three-game Southern Conference series at Western Carolina, beginning Thursday. The teams are set to play Thursday at 4 p.m. (CT), Friday at 4 p.m. (CT) and Saturday at 1 p.m. (CT).
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