AUSportTalk 4 Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 Tony Caldwell hit a pair of home runs for the second straight game and Hunter Morris chipped in with his seventh home run of the season as Auburn defeated Georgia State, 4-2, on Tuesday night at Plainsman Park. The Auburn pitching trio of Dexter Price, Michael Hurst and Austin Hubbard held Georgia State to a season-low-tying five hits and were helped by a season-high tying three double plays as Auburn won its 13th consecutive non-conference game of the season to move to 21-10 on the year. “This was great for our pitching staff. Michael, Dexter and Austin threw the ball really well and we really needed that,†Auburn Head Coach John Pawlowski said. “This game was not the prettiest game offensively but we found a way to win and that’s the bottom line right now.†Hurst (3-0) earned the win in his second straight appearance, entering in the sixth with a man on and one out and a run already in to tie the game at 1-1 but he fanned the first hitter he faced before issuing a walk and getting a groundout to end the inning. “Offensively it took a while for us to get going but we played good defense and our pitching was solid,†Hurst said. “Coming up with a 4-2 win is big for our pitching staff.†Hubbard earned his sixth save of the season and his second in four days by throwing a scoreless two innings after relieving Hurst in the eighth after a leadoff walk. Hubbard whiffed three of the eight hitters he faced, though his wild pitch cost Auburn a run in the eighth. Morris’ seventh home run of the year put Auburn up 1-0 in the third, homering to right-center on a 3-2 pitch after falling behind 0-2 in the count and fouling off three pitches with the count all even at two balls and two strikes. After Georgia State (19-10) tied the game in the top of the sixth on a Chase Childers’ RBI single to chase Price, Caldwell launched his third home run in his last six plate appearances dating back to Sunday’s five-run fifth at Mississippi State to put Auburn ahead, 2-1. “We started off slow tonight and we couldn’t put back-to-back hits together but we were able to get a few good at bats and get enough to get the win,†Caldwell said. “Everything is just going my way right now and it’s good to come out and get a couple of hits every day.†Ben Jones followed Caldwell’s seventh home run of the season with a line drive to deep center that Georgia State centerfielder Nick Hogan made a play on but had the ball pop out of his glove as he crashed into the wall. With the ball rolling away from Hogan, leftfielder Jonathan Kolowich fumbled the ball trying to pick it up, allowing Jones to circle the bases. The triple was the first in Jones’ career and gave the team 10 on the season and a 3-1 lead. Georgia State got a run back in the top of the eighth as Hubbard allowed a single to the second hitter he faced after coming in for Hurst with a man on before uncorking a wild pitch with Hogan on third to make it 3-2. Caldwell’s sixth home run in his last 13 games gave Auburn a 4-2 lead in the eighth as he sent one over the 30-foot-high wall in left with one down and nobody on. The home run was the 67th of the season for Auburn and the 38th solo shot. Price, who didn’t factor into the decision, worked 5 1/3 innings on the mound, allowing a run on three hits and a career-high three walks while striking out two. After walking two in the first inning, he was able to work three straight 1-2-3 innings thanks to Caldwell throwing out a runner trying to steal second in the second and a double play in the fourth when Trent Mummey chased down a ball in center and doubled the man off first. “Dexter got us into the sixth inning and that is what we are looking for. His stuff was pretty good and he battled and gave us a chance. He put the ball in play and let our defense do the work,†Paw“Trent Mummey turning that double play in center and Ben Jones running down a ball in the ninth, those are two nice plays by our outfielders and sometimes that’s the difference in the ball game.†Caldwell has now thrown out 17 base runners attempting steals this season and has caught seven in his last six games. Georgia State starter John Locklear (4-2) suffered the loss for Georgia State, allowing three runs on four hits and three walks in 5 1/3 innings. Auburn returns to the diamond on Wednesday at 6pm against Bethune Cookman, which lost 12-7 at Florida on Tuesday night. Sr. RHP Paul Burnside (0-2, 6.95) will get the starting nod on the mound for Auburn. Wednesday night is Fan Appreciation night and there is no cost to attend the game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AgentOrange 36 Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Tiger 0 Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 Go Tigerssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackson-Sullivan 0 Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 Nice win on a night that could have been one of those letdown game nights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.