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Auburn Softball is coming off their first series loss of the season. It happened in a rather strange fashion as a controversial call in the first game and then two rare defensive errors caused the Tigers to drop Game 1. While the Tigers dropped the series, it's still one that they can feel a bit confident about since they should have and could have taken the series from the Gators at their place in Gainesville.
Of course, that's not all that's happened in the softball world. Last night, Associate Head Coach Corey Myers announced his immediate resignation. Myers was Auburn's pitching coach and has worked wonders with the Tigers' pitchers over the last few seasons. This year's starters, in particular, have been masterful. His sudden departure adds another distraction to the team at a time when it's trying to regain its footing.
But enough on that, let's get to this series.
ERA | Opponent ERA | Batting AVG | Opponent's BA% | Slugging % | On Base % | |
Auburn | 1.32 | 6.22 | .282 | .198 | .472 | .417 |
Georgia | 1.73 | 6.72 | .364 | .191 | .509 | .446 |
Now, the Tigers are on the road again to take on the Georgia Bulldogs. Georgia, like Auburn, relies heavily on two pitchers. In the Bulldogs' case, it's Brittany Gray and Mary Wilson Avant. They have ERAs of 1.51 and 2.02 respectively. At the plate, the Bulldogs have stats similar to the Florida team Auburn faced last weekend. They have four hitters with averages over .400 and one that is just below at .392. They're going to be a major test for Kaylee Carlson and Makayla Martin.
Luckily for Auburn, Kaylee Carlson appeared to have hit her stride in Monday's Game 3 against Florida and improved even more over her already amazing awesomeness. Auburn's bats may be struggling this season - the Tigers don't have a single hitter batting over .400 - but the pitching has been outstanding and has gotten the team out of plenty of jams.
Auburn needs to bounce back from last weekend and get this series win. Losing it isn't the end of the world, but it could be a big confidence shaker.
How to Watch:
Game 1: 5:00 pm Central, SECNetwork+
Game 2: 6:00 pm Central, ESPN
Game 3: 11:00 am Central, SECNetwork