What fight, what tenacity, what courage the Tigers displayed Sunday night in coming back from a 6-2 deficit to finally take the lead 7-6 in the ninth inning in the Tallahassee Regional. The game was full of drama right to the end as the Tigers saw their dream of a championship, at least for one more day, slip away in extra innings.
The Tigers fought and scratched and chipped away at the lead (with 12 hits) until finally Josh Anthony, facing two outs and two strikes, hit a two-run single in the top of the ninth to take the lead.
Then Cole Lipscomb, was one strike away from completing the best performance of his career, gave up the tying run to send the game into extra innings. Dylon Busby hit a 3-2 pitch to center that barely missed the outstretched glove of a running Jonah Todd by just inches. Had Todd made the haul, the Tigers would have poured out of the dugout to celebrate a championship.
Lipscomb was on fire at one point setting down 15 batters in a row and finishing with 10 strikeouts. “I think that’s the best he’s ever thrown in my short time here, and I couldn’t be more proud for him,” said coach Butch Thompson. “I wanted him on that mound so that will be a coaches’ decision and coaches’ mistake to be second guessed.”
In the 10th inning, Auburn was one strike away from celebrating a championship for the second time when reliever Calvin Coker hit the No. 9 hitter J.C. Flowers on an 0-2 count with two outs with the bases loaded to give the Seminoles the win, forcing a deciding game two Monday.
The Tigers came ever so close to doing what many didn’t think they could do. Question is do they have enough left in the tank to recover from such a gut wrenching loss and come back in less than 24 hours to seal the deal? Coach Thompson said he’s never been more proud of a team in all his years of coaching and told his guys to put this one behind them and focus on game two.
But can Auburn recover from such an emotional loss and just as important, can they do it without their three best pitchers? With Lipscomb, Keegan Thompson, and Casey Mize, Auburn can play with anybody in the nation, with out them they tend to struggle. With all three having been used to get to this juncture, it will be an opportunity for some one to rise to the occasion. At his point it looks like senior Gabe Klobosits or true freshman Ryan Watson may get the chance.
Editor’s note:
Fans can catch the game on ESPN. first pitch at 6 p.m. CT.
The post Can Auburn Baseball Recover to Seal the Deal in Region Championship Game? appeared first on Track 'Em Tigers, Auburn's oldest and most read independent blog.
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