March 24, 2009

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Auburn baseball team plated nine runs, all with two outs, in the top of the sixth inning to pull away for an 18-7 win at Samford Tuesday night at Joe Lee Griffin Field.

"From an offensive standpoint, this was a good effort," Samford head coach Casey Dunn said. "I felt good about what we did at the plate, especially early on. When you give up a nine spot in an inning, that takes it out of everybody."

Samford was led at the plate by Bo Smith, going 3-for-4 with a double, and David Schulze went 2-for-5 with a home run and an RBI. Mason Meredeth also homered in a 1-for-5 performance.

Tyler Vanderheiden pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up five runs on three hits to take the loss on the mound. Vanderheiden was one of eight pitchers used in the game by Samford.

For Auburn, Tony Caldwell went 4-for-5 with a home run and three RBI. Joseph Sanders was 2-for-3 with two home runs, including a grand slam, and six RBI. Justin Hargett was also 4-for-5 with three RBI for the Tigers.

Bradley Hendrix pitched 4.0 innings in relief, giving up one run on three hits to earn the win for Auburn.

Samford entered the bottom of the fifth inning trailing by a score of 4-2. The Bulldogs plated five runs in the fifth to take a 7-4 lead. After Wayne Miller singled to center field and stole second base, Stephen Ballard doubled to right field to drive in Miller to make the score 4-3.

Meredeth then homered to left-center field with Ballard on base to give Samford a 5-4 lead. Schulze followed Meredeth's homer with a solo shot to center field to make the score 6-4. After Smith doubled and moved to third on a fly out, Davis Harrison reached base on a fielder's choice and Smith scored on the play for a 7-4 Samford lead.

In the top of the sixth inning, Caldwell and Kevin Patterson singled and Trent Mummey walked to load the bases with two outs. Sanders then hit a grand slam to left-center field to give Auburn the lead for good at 8-7.

The next batter after the grand slam, Ben Jones, reached base on a Samford error. Hunter Morris and Brian Fletcher then walked to load the bases again. Casey McElroy singled to right field to drive in Morris and Jones for a 10-7 Auburn lead. Caldwell then homered to right-center field to make the score 13-7.

Auburn added three runs in the eighth inning and two more in the ninth inning to make the final score 18-7.

Samford drops to 7-15 with the loss. Auburn improves to 16-8 with the win.

Samford will return to action on Wednesday evening when the Bulldogs play host to Belmont at 6 p.m. Fans can follow the game live on the internet via GameTracker at the link below.

GameTracker For Wednesday's Game