AUBURN | A strong defense has helped Auburn be in a number of close games this season despite its inconsistencies on the mound.

The Tigers turned four double plays in a series win at Georgia last weekend to bring its NCAA-leading total to 47 on the season.

“We pivot great at second. You’ve got to be good on the left side of the infield, which we are. There’s no weakness in regards to our infield,” Butch Thompson told Andy Burcham on his This Week in Auburn Baseball podcast.

“Pitchers do a good job of inducing ground balls but we’re probably letting too many guys on base too, which gives more opportunities for double plays.”

Graduate third baseman Rankin Woley, junior shortstop Ryan Bliss and junior second baseman Brody Moore are all returning starters. Former JUCO shortstop Tyler Miller took over the starting position at first base this season.

“The defensive ability of those four guys have been a strength from day one of this season and continue to be a strength of our team. It’s been so consistent for the entire year,” said Thompson.

“Those are four stalwarts of our offense as well. Those four guys, both offensively and defensively, have played amazing this year. The record doesn’t reflect to the good work they’ve done. I would take these four guys on an infield for the rest of my career and feel good about it.”

Bliss, Miller, Woley and Moore are the top four hitters on the team, and are the only full-time players with a batting average above .300. They have combined for 33 of AU’s 71 doubles, 30 of 62 home runs and 132 of 274 RBi.

CLUTCH GENE: Judd Ward didn’t put up huge numbers in Athens but the Auburn senior came up with several key plays in clutch situations. Ward, who has played through a shoulder injury for most of the season, made several diving catches in left field including one in the bottom of the ninth of Friday night’s game to take away a potential leadoff double or triple. AU went on to win that game 10-6 in 14 innings. The following day, Ward had an RBI groundout in the third inning and then a key RBI triple in the eighth that proved to be the winning run after the Bulldogs scored three runs in the ninth.

“That’s the reason why we keep agonizing whether to play Judd or not. He’s not 100 percent and will not be 100 percent,” Thompson said. “Judd continues to come up humungous whether it's at the plate or in the outfield when it matters most.”

MOVING UP: Auburn has moved into a three-way tie with Texas A&M and Missouri for 12th place in the SEC after its series win at Georgia. All three schools are 5-16, two games behind 11th-place LSU (7-14), which visits Auburn this weekend. The SEC Tournament, which gets underway May 25 in Hoover, Ala., takes the top 12 teams in the conference. The top four teams earn a first round bye.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: It’s hard to imagine going 0 for 4 with four strikeouts and winning player of the week but that’s exactly what Ryan Bliss did last weekend. In the next two games against Georgia, both wins, Bliss was 5 of 11 with two doubles, one home run and five RBI. He walked once and didn’t strike out again. Rankin Woley batted .333 on the weekend with a home run and one RBI, and hit several other balls to the outfield wall. In AU’s 10-6 win Friday, Ryan Dyal hit his first career home run in the fifth inning and then drove home the winning run with an RBI double in the 14th.

PITCHER OF THE WEEK: Will Morrison won Friday night’s game holding UGA to just one unearned run over the final 2.2 innings, striking out five including the final batter of the game with the tying runs on second and third base. He also threw 2.0 scoreless innings Friday. Even though he had a 6.23 ERA in two outings, Carson Swilling pitched the final 3.1 innings and earned the save in Saturday’s 9-7 win. Peyton Glavine threw 3.0 perfect innings of relief during Friday’s win. Morrison and Glavine are walk-ons.

NEXT UP: Auburn hosts UAB Tuesday night at 6 p.m. CT on SEC Network. AU freshman RHP Jack Sokol (1-0, 0.00) will face UAB freshman Jonah Smith (0-1, 8.10). Richard Fitts, Mason Barnett and Brooks Fuller are expected to make an appearance out of the bullpen. AU hosts LSU Thursday at 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network, Friday at 7 p.m. on SEC Network and Saturday at 2 p.m. on SECN+/ESPN+.