The Auburn Tigers claimed victory in an SEC series for the first time this season over the weekend in Baton Rouge, LA. After coming into the series with just a 3-9 conference record, the Tigers were able to take two of three from No. 6 LSU over the weekend.
Phenomenal pitching performances and timely hitting set up Mickey Dean’s squad for success in the battle of Tiger teams. Auburn has now won seven of its last nine games, showing the Tigers may be peaking at the perfect time heading into the home stretch of the season.
Here are the five Tigers that stood out in the massive series win.
Shelby Lowe
David Gray/Auburn Tigers
If Auburn is going to compete for a spot in the NCAA Tournament, it needs another pitcher to step up behind ace Maddie Penta. Senior Shelby Lowe (6-3) proved she can be that pitcher with a fantastic performance over the weekend.
The left-hander got the ball for the series opener on Friday and put together possibly her best start in a Tiger uniform, surrendering just 3 hits over a complete game, 5-strikeout, 1-run performance. Lowe started again on Sunday, and while she wasn’t as dominant as she was in the opener, her 4 2/3 innings of 2-run ball was enough for Auburn to capture a series victory.
In total, the senior navigated her way through 11 2/3 innings of 3-run ball. Most importantly, the Tigers captured wins in both of her starts.
Maddie Penta
Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers
While Shelby Lowe stole the show on the mound, senior Maddie Penta (13-6) was nearly just as dominant herself. Although she did receive the loss on Saturday, Penta pitched well enough to garner a win with 6 innings of 2-run ball.
Penta’s highlight of the weekend came in the series finale, where she earned a win after entering the game with the Tigers trailing 2-1 in the 6th. Penta was dominant over the final two frames, striking out 4 LSU batters over two scoreless innings while the Tiger bats completed a come-from-behind win.
Annabelle Widra
David Gray/Auburn Tigers
Junior Annabelle Widra has quietly become one of the most important pieces to Auburn’s success this season, both as a hitter and a pitcher. Her “Ohtani-esque” tools were put on full display in the series against LSU.
The Hoover, AL native sparked a 3-run 4th inning in Auburn’s series-opening win with a 2-run single followed by a key stolen base. She then took the mound for 2/3 of an inning in Sunday’s finale, inducing a pair of outs on just six pitches before handing the ball of to Maddie Penta.
Nelia Peralta
Grayson Belanger/Auburn Tigers
It was a quiet weekend for most of the position players on both sides in this series, but Auburn shortstop Nelia Perala was able to do some damage in timely spots. The junior managed just 2 hits in 9 tries over the weekend, but did get the scoring started with an RBI ground out in Friday’s win.
Icess Tresvik
David Gray/Auburn Tigers
Junior utility player Icess Tresvik continued to be a constant presence on the base paths over the weekend. While she only collected 2 hits, Tresvik did start a key 6th-inning rally in the series finale with a single. The Wilmington, N.C native also drove home the game-winning run in the opener on a ground ball that was booted by LSU third baseman Maddox McKee.
