The Auburn Tigers got back on track last weekend by sweeping Missouri in their SEC home-opening series.
Their strong defensive showing impressed the voters that make up the NFCA/USA TODAY Top 25 Coaches Poll, as they rose two spots from No. 21 to No. 19 in the latest poll.
The home-standing Tigers shut out Missouri to open the series behind a strong effort by [autotag]Maddie Penta[/autotag] in the circle. Penta struck out a career-tying 17 batters while [autotag]Lindsey Garcia[/autotag] and [autotag]Aubrie Lisenby[/autotag] each crushed two-run home runs in Auburn’s 4-0 win in game one.
On Saturday evening, Auburn clinched the series on a walk-off error in the bottom of the 7th to win, 2-1.
After severe weather altered the weekend schedule, both teams took the day away from the play on Sunday and reconvened for their regularly-scheduled series finale on Monday in front of a national audience. Similar to Saturday’s game two, a 1-1 game forced extra innings, and for the second game in a row, Auburn walked off to win, 2-1. [autotag]Denver Bryant[/autotag] singled home [autotag]Abbey Smith[/autotag] in the bottom of the 8th inning to seal the win.
“Tonight, you saw two good teams battling,” head coach Mickey Dean said following Auburn’s 2-1 win over Missouri on Monday evening. “Our kids certainly battled. I challenged them in the last two innings to play with some more confidence. As each player starts to grow their confidence, good things will continue to happen.”
Next up for Auburn (25-9, 4-2 SEC) is a midweek clash with in-state rival Samford on Wednesday night before hosting Ole Miss for a three-game series this weekend at Jane B. Moore Field.
Here’s a look at this week’s USA TODAY/NFCA Top 25 Coaches Poll
| # | TEAM | W-L | PREV. |
| 1 | Oklahoma | 30-1 | 1 |
| 2 | Oklahoma State | 29-2 | 2 |
| 3 | UCLA | 29-4 | 3 |
| 4 | Tennessee | 26-2 | 4 |
| 5 | Clemson | 32-1 | 5 |
| 6 | Stanford | 27-3 | 7 |
| 7 | Florida State | 26-7 | 6 |
| 8 | Washington | 25-6 | 9 |
| 9 | Texas | 30-5-1 | 10 |
| 10 | Arkansas | 24-9 | 12 |
| 11 | Florida | 24-7 | 8 |
| 12 | Virginia Tech | 25-6 | 11 |
| 13 | Duke | 25-6 | 14 |
| 14 | LSU | 26-6 | 15 |
| 15 | Georgia | 27-6 | 17 |
| 16 | Kentucky | 20-7-1 | 13 |
| 17 | Alabama | 24-10 | 16 |
| 18 | Oregon | 20-10 | 19 |
| 19 | Auburn | 24-9 | 21 |
| 20 | Arizona | 20-12 | 18 |
| 21 | Baylor | 23-8 | 20 |
| 22 | Northwestern | 17-8 | 24 |
| 23 | Wichita State | 26-7 | 22 |
| 24 | Utah | 21-5 | 23 |
| 25 | Texas A&M | 19-11 | NR |
DROPPED OUT: No. 25 Louisiana
RECEIVING VOTES: Louisiana (22), California (20), Arizona State (6), Boston University (5), Louisville (2).
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