#11 Softball Falls To #7 Auburn, 6-2

Thursday, April 2

Auburn, Ala.

7:00 PM

University of Tennessee

26-8, 0

#7 Auburn

36-4, 0

Tennessee

Auburn

April 02, 2015 | Softball

Box Score

April 2, 2015

Box Score

AUBURN, Ala. -- Home runs by Scarlet McSwain and Gretchen Aucoin kept No. 11 Tennessee in the game on Thursday, but the Lady Vols could not rally from an early deficit, falling to No. 7 Auburn, 6-2, in Game 1 of their three-game series at Jane B. Moore Field.

McSwain homered in the second inning and Aucoin homered in the fourth for Tennessee's (26-8, 6-4 SEC) two runs. Auburn (36-4, 9-1 SEC) scored two runs in the first inning, one in the second, one in the third and two in the fourth.

McSwain finished 3-for-3 on the night. Tory Lewis went 2-for-3.

Erin Gabriel (11-4) took the loss after allowing three runs and striking out three in 4.2 frames. Cheyanne Tarango threw 1.1 relief innings with two earned runs allowed.

Auburn's Lexi Davis (17-1) earned the win after allowing two runs over 5.0 innings. Rachel Walters threw 2.0 scoreless relief frames.

Auburn took a 2-0 lead in the first inning when Haley Fagan hit a two-run single to right center with two outs, scoring Emily Carosone and Tiffany Howard.

Tennessee struck back in the second inning when McSwain clubbed a one-out solo homer off the scoreboard in left field off a 3-1 pitch from Lexi Davis. The home run was McSwain's sixth of the season.

The Tigers extended their lead back to two runs in the bottom of the second when Howard hit a two-out RBI single through the left side to plate Jenna Abbott.

Tarango relieved Gabriel in the third inning and Auburn's lead grew to 4-1. After Meghan Gregg turned a 6-5 double play on a lineout to the left side, Abbott hit an RBI single to right center to score Fagan from second base.

Aucoin hit a leadoff home run to open the fourth inning and draw UT to within 4-2. She smashed a 2-2 pitch from Davis over the wall in left for her sixth home run of the year.

Auburn added two more runs in the bottom of the fourth. Carosone hit an RBI double to center field to plate Howard. Kasey Cooper followed with a sacrifice fly to center field to score Carosone. Gabriel re-entered the circle in relief of Tarango after the sac fly.

Tennessee's best chance for a comeback came in the top of the fifth when the Lady Vols loaded the bases with no outs. Tory Lewis hit a leadoff single to left center, Rainey Gaffin was hit by a pitch and Megan Geer drew a walk on a full count. Davis escaped unscathed when Gregg hit into a fielder's choice with the out at home and Annie Aldrete grounded into a 6-4-3 double play.

Tennessee and Auburn will play Game 2 of their series on Friday at 7 p.m. ET. The game will feature an online video broadcast on SEC Network +/WatchESPN and a live audio broadcast on WNML 990 AM and UTSports.com.