Tigers strikeout 16 for 2nd-straight shutout
AUBURN | Auburn’s pitching has been too much for Holy Cross this weekend.
Casey Mize and Cole Lipscomb combined to shutout the Crusaders for a second-straight game, striking out 16 in a 4-0 win Saturday afternoon at Plainsman Park.
“Casey was up on a lot of pitches early but he did get more efficient as he went,” Auburn coach Butch Thompson said. “It’s hard to create low pitch counts when you’re swing and miss.
“You’ll continue to hear me talk about how important the bullpen is for us to have success and Cole has been a big piece here early.”
Mize (2-0) struck out a career-high 12, allowing four hits and one walk in 5.0 innings. He threw 86 pitches.
“Early in the game I was feeling a little out of sync but finally settled in about the third inning,” Mize said. “Going deep in counts is definitely something I don’t want to do but it allowed me to get some punch-outs so it worked out.”
Lipscomb earned his second save of the season striking out four over the final 4.0 innings. The senior right-hander allowed two hits and didn’t issue a walk.
“My slider felt good today. I used that a bunch,” Lipscomb said. “I didn't have my best fastball but I did have my best slider.”
Auburn scored a run in the second on an RBI double by Damon Haecker, and two more in the fourth on an RBI single by Jonah Todd and a bases-loaded walk by Luke Jarvis.
The Tigers added a run in the fifth on an RBI single by freshman Conor Davis, his first college hit.
Todd had two of the Tigers five hits.
Auburn, which won 7-0 Friday, improved to 6-1 on the season. The three-game series against Holy Cross concludes Sunday at noon CT. It will be available for streaming on SECN+ and Watch ESPN.
GAME NOTES
** The last time an Auburn pitcher struck out 12 was Keegan Thompson against Alabama in the Capital City Classic on March 3, 2015. Sixteen strikeouts are the most for Auburn since striking out 16 against Florida Atlantic Feb. 28, 2010.
** Mize has yet to allow a run in his first two starts this season. He’s totaled 19 strikeouts and one walk in 10.0 innings.
** Lipscomb has a win and two saves in three appearances out of the bullpen this season. He hasn’t allowed a run in 9.1 innings.
** Todd batted leadoff for the first time this season. He’s hitting .414 on the year.
** In their second-career starts true freshmen Will Holland and Davis reached base four times apiece. Holland was 1-of-1 with two walks and a hit by pitcher while Davis was 1-of-1 with three walks.
** Auburn scored three runs on three hits and seven walks in 3.2 innings off Holy Cross starter Brendan King. King is the preseason Patriot League Pitcher of the Year. He was 7-2 with a 2.84 ERA and 74 strikeouts in 82.1 innings last season.