AUBURN | In a back-and-forth slugfest, it was Auburn’s closer that made the difference.

Blake Burkhalter allowed just one unearned run over the final 2.2 innings as the Tigers rallied for a 13-12 win over South Alabama Tuesday night at Riverwalk Stadium in Montgomery.

The game’s start was delayed an hour due to rain and then lasted 4:13.

"I thought we had our backs against the wall pretty much the whole night,” assistant coach Gabe Gross told the Auburn Network. “I thought they fought, they scrapped, they never let go of the rope. In the same breath, we played some really bad baseball. There’s a lot of things tonight you just can’t do.

“At the end of the night, we found a way to overcome all of it. Burky was huge at the end of the ballgame to be able to come in and kinda right the ship on the mound. Guys kept fighting at the plate and found a way to get one more than South Alabama did.”

Tied 12-12 in the eighth inning, Bobby Peirce smacked a one-out triple deep into the right-centerfield gap. Mike Bello followed with an RBI groundout to first base to score Peirce and give the Tigers the win.

Auburn improves to 15-6 overall while the Jaguars fall to 15-4.

“Bobby Peirce has probably put in more swings in the cage for the amount of at-bats he’s had than anybody I’ve every been around. He works his rear end off and has not had a lot of opportunity,” said Gross. “My heart just beats really, really loudly for him tonight for him to come through in a moment.”

Peirce, who pinch-hit for Bryson Ware in the fourth, finished 2 of 3 with one RBI.

Burkhalter (3-0) entered the game in the seventh with two on and two outs, and AU clinging to a 12-11 lead. He struck out the first batter he faced and retired the next on a groundout.

He allowed just one hit with three strikeouts and one walk to earn the win.

“We couldn’t throw up a zero and I was just looking for my time to come in. I was really just wanting to get out there and compete for my team,” said Burkhalter.

“I was just super excited my team battled back there in the ninth inning and going out there I was like, ‘Don’t blow it out there.’ The guys battled hard tonight. Coming back earlier in the ninth inning to get a chance to win the game was really important for us.”

The Jaguars built a 6-0 lead with three runs in the first, two in the third and another in the fourth.

Auburn stormed back with seven runs in the fourth on five hits, three walks and a balk. Garrett Farquhar got the scoring started with an RBI single and Blake Rambusch followed with the same. After a Kason Howell Walk, Sonny DiChiara drove home two with a single and Brooks Carlson another on a single.

After a strikeout and a balk, Brody Moore doubled down the right field line with two outs to drive in two and put AU up 7-6.

The lead didn’t last long as USA answered with four runs in the fifth to go back up 10-7, but AU’s bats stayed red-hot in the bottom of the inning.

The Tigers struck for five more runs on five hits, one walk and two bit by pitches. Farquhar got it started with a solo home run. After loading the bases with one out, AU had four consecutive RBI singles by Carlson, Cam Hill, Moore and Peirce to take a 12-10 lead.

USA scored a run in the seventh and another in the eighth after the leadoff batter reached on an error and came in to score on a suicide squeeze.

Carlson was 3 of 5 with two runs scored and two RBI, Rambusch 2 of 5 with two runs scored and one RBI, DiChiara 2 of 3 with two runs scored and two RBI, Moore 2 of 4 with three RBI and Farquhar 2 of 4 with two runs scored and two RBI.

Auburn used a total of nine pitchers, allowing 15 hits, six walks, three hit batters and three wild pitches. Starter Mason Barnett allowed three runs in 1.0 innings, Carson Swilling two runs in 1.1 innings, Cade Granzow one run in 1.2 innings, Tyler Drabick two runs in 0.2 innings, Brooks Fuller two runs in 0.0 innings, John Armstrong no runs in 0.1 innings, Chase Isbell no runs on 1.0 innings and Ben Bosse one run in 0.1 innings.

Auburn returns to SEC play Friday for a three-game series at Texas A&M. First pitch Friday is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CT on SECN+/ESPN+.