auburn softball – Page 19 – Syndication Server

Ellis, Penta earn national preseason recoginition

Preseason mentions are continuing to roll in for two of Auburn’s key pieces.

The preseason accolades keep rolling in for two of Auburn Softball’s key pieces.

Ahead of the 2023 season opener on Feb. 10, RHP [autotag]Maddie Penta[/autotag] and 1B [autotag]Bri Ellis[/autotag] continue to earn preseason nods from national media outlets.

Ellis returns to the roster following a stellar freshman campaign where she hit 20 home runs and scored 49 runs while slugging at a .772 clip. To open the 2023 season, Ellis has found a place on Softball America Preseason College Top 100 list, checking in at No. 76. She also ranks No. 77 on Extra Innings Softball’s Extra Elite 100 player rankings.

Not only is Ellis being recognized for her efforts at the plate, but her fielding is being noticed as well. Last season, she recorded 251 putouts and held a fielding percentage of .989. Extra Innings Softball has listed Ellis as College Softball’s No. 7 first baseman in their preseason ranks.

Penta, the anchor of Auburn’s pitching staff, has also earned preseason acknowledgment. Penta joins Ellis on Extra Innings Softball’s Extra Elite 100 list, as well as Softball America’s Preseason College Top 100 list at No. 47 and 61 respectively.

When breaking down her preseason ranking even further, Extra Innings Softball has named Penta the No. 14 pitcher in the country.

Penta struck out a whopping 269 batters last season while posting a 24-10 record in 42 appearances. Team USA Softball is expecting Penta to have another great season, which is why they have added her to the Top 50 watchlist for Player of the Year.

Ellis, Penta, and the rest of the Tigers will begin their run for another postseason berth on Feb. 10 in Clearwater, Florida as part of the NFCA Leadoff Classic. First up for Auburn will be St. John’s at 12:30 p.m. CT.

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Auburn Softball named a ‘Team to Watch’ in SEC

What is Auburn Softball’s ceiling in 2023? D1Softball weighs in.

After winning 40 games last season, the No. 19 Auburn Tigers are poised for another big season.

The Tigers return two of three key pitchers from last season and a myriad of solid bats in the lineup that will be sure to lead them to success. That is why D1Softball has listed Auburn as a “team to watch” in the SEC this season.

As part of their SEC preview, D1Softball believes that Auburn has all the pieces needed to take a step forward in 2023.

The Tigers have all the pieces to make another jump this season providing they can stay healthy, especially in the circle. [autotag]Shelby Lowe[/autotag] tried to pitch through pain for the entirety of the 2022 season and her performance understandably suffered. It put even more pressure on [autotag]Maddie Penta[/autotag], who threw 195.0 innings. If both are back to full strength following Lowe’s offseason surgery, there are few duos in the conference or the country that can match them. The Tigers added some pitcher/utility players to give them more depth in multiple areas. Auburn’s increased strength and conditioning work was apparent last season by the major boost in the offensive numbers. [autotag]Bri Ellis[/autotag], [autotag]Nelia Peralta[/autotag] and [autotag]Makayla Packer[/autotag] are among the players returning who can provide another jolt.

The Tigers open the 2023 slate on Friday, Feb. 11 in Clearwater, Fla. at the NFCA Leadoff Classic. Auburn will compete with St. John’s, Fordham, Pittsburgh, Indiana, and Illinois during opening weekend.

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Auburn Softball projected to finish 8th in SEC

D1Softball predicts Auburn to make another run to the NCAA Tournament in 2023.

The 2022 Auburn Tigers returned to a familiar level of play last season by winning 40 games and making a run toward an NCAA Tournament berth.

The excitement continues to build for [autotag]Mickey Dean[/autotag]’s squad as many of last season’s pieces return in 2023. D1Softball believes that Auburn will build on last season’s success, and make another trip to the postseason.

In what is expected to be a challenging conference slate, D1Softball.com has Auburn projected to finish the season as the No. 8 team in the SEC.

While Auburn is projected to finish in the bottom half of the SEC, the strength of the conference needs to be considered. Despite a No. 8 prediction, Auburn enters the D1Softball preseason poll at No. 19, with seven SEC teams ranked above them.

D1Softball.com’s Projected SEC Standings

Florida
Arkansas
Alabama
Georgia
Tennessee
LSU
Kentucky
Auburn
Ole Miss
Missouri
Mississippi State
Texas A&M
South Carolina

[autotag]Maddie Penta[/autotag] and [autotag]Shelby Lowe[/autotag] return to anchor the pitching staff, while [autotag]Bri Ellis[/autotag], [autotag]Nelia Peralta[/autotag], [autotag]Aspyn Godwin[/autotag], and a plethora of others return to provide offensive power.

The Tigers open the season on Friday, Feb. 10 in Clearwater, Fla. as part of the NFCA Leadoff Classic. Auburn will face St. John’s and Fordham on opening day.

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Auburn Softball to open season in D1Softball’s preseason top 25

Auburn is in a good place to capitalize on last season’s 40-win campaign.

Auburn Softball enjoyed its best season since 2018 last year by winning 40 games and making an appearance in the Clemson Regional of the NCAA Softball Tournament.

This season, Auburn’s expectations have risen due to the return of several sluggers and solid pitchers. The potential that Auburn brings into the 2023 season has certainly weighed in on the national media, as the Tigers have made the cut in a preseason top 25 ranking.

D1Softball recently released its preseason rankings and has Auburn opening the season as the No. 19 team in the country. Auburn is one of ten SEC programs to earn a place in D1Softball’s initial rankings.

Auburn returns a plethora of hitters to its lineup including [autotag]Bri Ellis[/autotag], who led the team in home runs, RBI, and slugging percentage in 2022. Notable bats such as [autotag]Aspyn Godwin[/autotag], [autotag]Nelia Peralta[/autotag], and [autotag]Makayla Packer[/autotag] also return to the roster.

[autotag]Maddie Penta[/autotag] and [autotag]Shelby Lowe[/autotag] return to the pitching circle as juniors this season. Last year the duo combined to strike out 398 batters, 128 of those strikeouts were against SEC competition.

Here is a look at the initial poll from D1Softball.com

1	Oklahoma
2	UCLA
3	Oklahoma State
4	Florida State
5	Florida
6	Alabama
7	Northwestern
8	Arkansas
9	Clemson
10	Georgia
11	Stanford
12	Tennessee
13	Virginia Tech
14	Texas
15	UCF
16	Kentucky
17	LSU
18	Arizona
19	Auburn
20	Louisiana
21	Washington
22	Duke
23	Oregon
24	North Texas
25	Ole Miss

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Bri Ellis listed among FloSoftball’s top 10 sluggers in College Softball

The sophomore led the team in home runs, RBI, and slugging percentage last season.

Auburn Softball won its most games since 2018 last season, and then-freshman [autotag]Bri Ellis[/autotag] was an essential reason why.

The Tigers’ first baseman led the team in home runs (20), RBI (49), and slugging percentage (.772). Her performance in 2022 has caught the attention of the national media, including FloSoftball.

Ahead of the 2023 season, FloSoftball has released its “Top 10 Sluggers In College Softball For 2023” list, which includes Ellis. FloSoftball’s Briar Napier says that Ellis’ slugging and timely hits will help Auburn return to the level of success that they enjoyed during the mid-2010s.

The Houston native burst onto the scene immediately for the Tigers in her first year with the team, helping Auburn bounce back from a subpar 27 wins in 2021 to an impressive 40 in 2022.

Ellis garnered the SEC’s Freshman of the Year award and a place on its all-conference second team.

The honors were well-deserved for the 5-foot-10 first baseman, who tallied 20 home runs and 49 RBIs against the loaded pitching staffs of the SEC. She posted a .772 slugging percentage with it, for the second-best mark by a freshman in Auburn history.

Ellis had 15 multi-RBI games and did even better at the plate when Tiger teammates were in scoring position (.356 batting average with runners on second and/or third, compared to .302 normally), solidifying herself as not just a powerful hitter, but an opportunistic one – a key attribute for a player to have in one of the country’s most cutthroat conferences.

Cydney Sanders, Grace Lyons, and Tiare Jennings of Oklahoma, as well as Erin Coffey from Kentucky join Ellis on this list.

Auburn Softball opens the 2023 season on Friday, Feb. 10 at the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Clearwater, Florida. The Tigers will face St. John’s, Fordham, Pittsburgh, Indiana, and Illinois as part of opening weekend.

Softballs Beware ⚠️

It’s almost #BriBomb SZN 👀#WarEagle | @briellis1 pic.twitter.com/5mN0gFN3Pr

— Auburn Softball (@AuburnSoftball) January 11, 2023

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Auburn Morning Rush: NIL collective reaches goal, Softball player announces retirement

Get the scoop on the latest Auburn Athletics news with the Thursday edition of the Auburn Morning Rush.

Good morning, Tiger fans. It is time to take a look at the latest news in Auburn athletics with the Thursday edition of the Auburn Morning Rush.

It’s Thursday, which means it is gameday for Auburn Soccer. The Tigers welcome an “unknown” opponent in UMass-Lowell to the Auburn Soccer Complex for a 6:30 kickoff. Coach Karen Hoppa says that her club is preparing for the River Hawks the same as they would prepare for any other opponent on the schedule.

“UMass Lowell is a very unknown opponent,” Hoppa said. “But we do know that they’re a great team and that they’re well-coached. We’re going to prepare for them like we would any other game and we’re going to continue to focus on getting better every game.”

Today’s digest also features two football players earning weekly honors. After playing a key role in Auburn’s 42-16 win over Mercer last Saturday, running back [autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag] and linebacker [autotag]Cam Riley[/autotag] have been recognized by the editors of the USA Today College Wire network.

Auburn softball has lost a member of its pitching staff due to medical concerns. Today’s rush reveals who has announced their retirement, and what Auburn’s pitching depth looks like following the departure.

Finally, good news for all athletes, as a NIL collective has reached a donation goal in a quick fashion.

Get the scoop on the latest news in Auburn athletics with the Thursday edition of the Auburn Morning Rush.

Auburn Morning Rush: Auburn well represented on SEC Academic Honor Roll

Academics, Softball, and Baseball are on tap for the Friday edition of the Auburn Morning Rush

Good morning, Tiger fans! It is time for the Friday edition of Auburn Morning Rush.

The first noteworthy news story of the day is Auburn student-athletes performance in the classroom, especially among first-year students.

Next, two of Auburn Softball’s highest-rated recruits for the 2022 cycle added “All-American” to their list of accomplishments.

Finally, a former Auburn slugger is climbing up the coaching ladder after receiving a promotion to a full-time assistant for a program in the Sun Belt Conference.

As you prepare for the day, as well as the weekend, here’s a look at today’s Auburn Morning Rush:

Catch a full day of Auburn programming on July 4

Need your Auburn Athletics fix? SEC Network will handle that on Monday with Auburn’s scheduled “SEC Network Takeover.”

The 2021-22 sports season ended for Auburn late last month as the Tigers Baseball team competed in the College World Series for the second time in three NCAA Tournaments.

Auburn’s magical run ended, leaving two full months on the calendar until Auburn football kicks off the season against Mercer at Jordan-Hare Stadium. That large gap in competition leaves Auburn fans wondering what to do now, and the SEC Network has a quick fix for that.

As part of their annual “SEC Takeover”, where the channel ropes off a day dedicated to each member of the conference to showcase some of the best games and events from the previous athletic season, Auburn will have their turn to take over the airwaves for a full 24 hours beginning Monday, July 4.

In years past, the SEC Network had scheduled memorable games from multiple seasons for each program to play throughout the day. This season, the network has compiled 12 of Auburn’s best moments from the most recent athletic season.

So, as you prepare for late-night fireworks, let SEC Network entertain you with a full day of Auburn’s best games from the 2021-22 season, beginning at 11:30 p.m. Sunday night with Auburn Football’s big win at home against Ole Miss.

Here’s the full schedule of when you can catch your favorite Auburn game from last season on the SEC Network:

Auburn softball exits NCAA tournament after elimination game loss

It was still a season to be proud of for the Tigers.

A late-game comeback effort wasn’t enough to keep the Tigers afloat at the Clemson Regional.

Auburn lost to the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns 4-3 on Saturday to end its NCAA run. Louisiana will advance to the Clemson Regional final for a chance to advance to the Super Regional round against the hosting Clemson Tigers.

Auburn kicked off proceedings after freshman infielder Neila Peralta hit an RBI single to allow utility player Carlee McCondichie to reach home in the top of the first inning. Infielder Lindsay Garcia added to the total in the top of the second with a sacrifice fly, but it wouldn’t go Auburn’s way after that.

The Ragin’ Cajuns scored four unanswered runs after Auburn’s initial run of scoring, including two in the bottom of the fifth. That made the score 4-2, but the Tigers made a last-ditch effort in the top of the seventh to keep their hopes alive.

Freshman Bri Ellis hit a sacrifice fly to put the game within reach for Auburn at a score of 4-3, but that would be as far as it went. Despite dropping the game, the Tigers still managed their first 40-win season since 2018 and finished top five in school history in six different statistics.

Cagle leads Clemson over Auburn

Clemson, S.C. – Valerie Cagle delivered on the mound and at the plate leading the Tigers to a 1-0 victory over Auburn at McWhorter Stadium Saturday afternoon. Cagle pitched a shutout and scored the only run of the game. Cagle went the distance and …

Clemson, S.C. — Valerie Cagle delivered on the mound and at the plate leading the Tigers to a 1-0 victory over Auburn at McWhorter Stadium Saturday afternoon. Cagle pitched a shutout and scored the only run of the game.

Cagle went the distance and only gave up four hits.

In the fourth inning Valerie Cagle hit a two-out double. Marissa Guimbarda hit a double to left to score Cagle. After four Clemson led 1-0.

Auburn threatened in the sixth and loaded the bases with one out. McKenzie Clark caught one in center and threw a laser to home holding the runner at third. A ground ball to short ended the threat.

Clemson had runners on the corners with on out in the sixth but couldn’t get one home.

With the win the Tigers move on to the noon game on Sunday and are just one win away from making the Super Regionals for the first time in history.