Auburn Softball came up just short in their quest for a national championship, losing to the Oklahoma Sooners 2-1 Wednesday night. The Sooners won the championship despite not having scored an earned run in the last 13 innings against Auburn.
The deciding factor in the final game of the Women’s College World Series was two unearned runs in the first inning and the strong arm of Sooner ace Paige Parker. She was magnificent once again garnering her 38th win against 3 losses. But her counter part, Auburn freshman Makayla Martin (15-4), was just as magnificent only allowing those two unearned runs in six innings.
Auburn’s lone run came in the fourth inning when Jade Rhodes hit her third home run in the Women’s College World Series. The Sooners scored their runs off two uncharacteristically defensive miscues.
As painful as it was to see Auburn come up short after coming oh so close, the 2016 Tigers had a magical season.
It was a season of great performance like Tiffany Howard’s game saving catch in game two and Emily Carasone’s grand slam to win that game. It was Kasey Cooper being named SEC Player of the Year. And it was the Tigers defeating last year’s national champs, the Florida Gators to win their second consecutive SEC Tournament Championship.
It was without a doubt the greatest season in Auburn softball history. But it was so much more.
For you see, these Tigers have forever changed Auburn Softball. Softball has been elevated to a major sport on the Plains and Auburn needs to forget about enlarging the football stadium till a couple thousand more seats have been added to Jane B. Moore Field.
These Tigers energized a fan base with their intensity, their team first attitude, and the sheer joy with which they played the game. Softball will never be the same again at Auburn. These Tigers have forever changed Auburn Softball. And we’re glad they did.
War Eagle ladies!
The post Tigers Have Forever Changed Auburn Softball (Despite Falling Short in Women’s College World Series) appeared first on Track 'Em Tigers, Auburn's oldest and most read independent blog.
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