Auburn baseball’s 2023 campaign has come to a disappointing close. No. 13 national seed Auburn fell to Southern Miss 7-2 in Saturday’s NCAA Tournament elimination game at Plainsman Park.

Southern Miss opened with a 3-run 1st inning and never looked back. The Golden Eagles were up 6-0 before AU scored 2 runs in the bottom of the 6th inning.

Unfortunately for the Tigers, that was all the scoring they could manage on Saturday. In the bottom of the 9th inning, AU stranded 2 runners.

Auburn did not manage an extra-base hit in either Auburn Regional contest. The Tigers had 9 hits on Saturday, with Southern Miss pitchers also issuing 4 walks.

AU’s scoring came on a 2-out rally in the bottom of the 6th inning. Bryson Ware walked before Cole Foster singled to left field. Chris Stanfield singled through the left side to plate Ware. Foster scored the second run when Cooper McMurray singled down the right-field line.

Christopher Sargent put Southern Miss on the board in the 1st inning with a 3-run home run. His 3 RBIs led the way for the Golden Eagles, who finished with 9 hits, including 4 homers. Southern Miss’ Dustin Dickerson had 2 solo blasts.

On the mound, starting pitcher Tommy Vail picked up the loss for Auburn. Vail pitched 4.1 innings, allowing 5 runs (4 earned) on 4 hits and 2 hits, striking out 4. Southern Miss’s Billy Oldham was the winning pitcher, going 5.2 innings, allowing 2 earned runs on 4 hits with 2 walks. Will Armistead pitched the final 3.1 innings for the Golden Eagles.

Auburn finishes the 2023 season 34-23-1.