AUBURN, Ala. — Auburn softball returned to the Plains on Friday evening with a 21-7 victory over the Northwest Florida State Raiders in 10 innings.
After falling behind early to the Raiders, a second-inning barrage of three straight home runs kickstarted an unstoppable Auburn offense. In total, the Tigers accounted for five home runs, most notably a three-run shot by senior Alyssa Hastings in the bottom of the second to give Auburn their first lead at 7-4.
Hastings also hit a three-run triple in the bottom of the fifth to give the Tigers a 10-4 lead. With a grand slam from sophomore Ava Ratliff, the Tigers pushed ahead to a 16-4 lead by the fifth inning.
However, while the Tigers saw no shortage of runs on Friday evening, they also carried many errors. Auburn totaled six errors over 10 innings, including three in the first two. These early mistakes let the Raiders take an early 4-0 lead in the top of the second on a two-run triple by freshman Cha’miya Williams. The Raiders also capitalized with an RBI double in the second from freshman Mylee Frazier.
Despite early defensive struggles, Auburn’s pitching ultimately allowed the Tigers to pull away comfortably. Auburn starting pitcher, sophomore Charley Butler, held her ground against the Raiders, totaling five strikeouts over the first three innings. Butler’s performance was matched by a late-game showing from senior Makayla Stephens, who struck out five over two innings; the Tigers quickly made up for early defensive mistakes with domination on the mound.
Auburn will look to keep their streak of strong play alive as they continue their three-game homestand against Gadsden State this Sunday, Oct. 25, at 1 p.m., followed by West Georgia on Friday, Nov. 6, at 5 p.m.
