Milwaukee Athletics

AUBURN, Ala. – The No. 4 Auburn Tigers flipped the script on the Milwaukee baseball team Sunday night, jumping out to an early lead and never relinquishing it in an 8-1 victory.
 
The Tigers scored five runs in the second inning, capped by a three-run home run from Chase Fralick. After Milwaukee answered with a run in the third, the Panthers were unable to generate any further offense as Auburn pulled away with three runs in the sixth.
 
Starting pitcher Ryan Hetzler struck out six Panthers over the first four innings for Auburn, while LJ Cormier was masterful in relief, striking out eight over five innings while allowing just one hit to improve to 2-0 on the season.
 
"Give credit to Hetzler and Cormier for throwing the ball really well," said head coach Shaun Wegner. "They just attacked us with their velocity and commanded their pitches well in the zone. We were just a little too much on our heels and passive early in the game offensively."
 
After Camden Kuhnke was unable to escape the second inning, Sotaro Ishida entered and recorded the final out of the frame to stem the tide. Milwaukee got its lone run in the third as Joey Spence doubled as ahead of a Christian Holmes single to centerfield before Grant Ross grounded out to score Spence.
 
Ishida began his outing by retiring 10 of the first 11 batters he faced but was unable to avoid damage in the sixth as Auburn scored three more runs.
 
Lucas Watson followed with a scoreless seventh inning, while Tristan Arnold finished the game with two scoreless frames.
 
"Outside of the one inning where Sotaro got into trouble, our bullpen was outstanding," added Wegner. "You can't ask for much more than what they gave us. We did a really good job out of the pen."
 
Despite the loss, Milwaukee can still can the Auburn Regional in final game of the bracket on Monday evening. The Panthers will once again face host Auburn, looking to bounce back and earn a spot in the Super Regionals and a trip to Ole Miss next weekend.
 
"You still have a chance to come into an environment like this in front of a packed crowd and play for a spot in the Super Regionals," Wegner said. "We can't feel sorry for ourselves, we have pick ourselves up and come out tomorrow with some more energy and try to win a championship."
 
First pitch of the game is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. at Plainsman Park, with broadcast coverage currently scheduled to take place on both ESPN+ and ESPNU.