Auburn Baseball Shuts Down UCF, Faces Quick Turnaround With Milwaukee Late Sunday Night

Due to several weather delays, the Auburn Tigers played a long game of baseball to keep their season alive, and they'll have to begin another to keep that hope.

Auburn catcher Chase Fralick (3) hit two home runs in the Tigers' win over UCF in the NCAA Tournament on Sunday. | Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

A total of seven hours separated the expected start time and the time the Auburn Tigers finished their first game on Sunday, but it was enough to take down No. 2-seeded UCF, winning 9-3. 

Four rain delays tried to slow down the Tigers’ momentum from Saturday, but the bats got hot once again for the home team, crushing six homers to come from behind after an early lead from the Knights. All six home runs were solo shots into the Plainsman Park crowd. 

"We continue to try to take another step," head coach Butch Thompson said. "We've got to stay hot at the plate, and the guys swung the bats great."

After going through the order once, leadoff batter Mason McCraine started the part with a solo shot into right field. Two batters later, Chase Fralick would hit another the same way to tie the game. 

Cranked by McCraine! 💥

Solo shot gets us one the board! pic.twitter.com/iz6rxubPgQ

— Auburn Baseball (@AuburnBaseball) June 1, 2026

Fralick would hit his second of the day in the seventh inning, hitting his fourth of the NCAA Tournament as well to put an exclamation point on the night. 

ANOTHER ONE!!☝️

Fralick's 2nd and our 6th of the game!! pic.twitter.com/Q8suVobdyR

— Auburn Baseball (@AuburnBaseball) June 1, 2026

Ethin Bingaman would get his in the fourth inning, while Cade Belyeu and Taylor Belza would hit one each in the sixth inning. That would give the Tigers the control in the game that they needed. 

On the mound, Thompson got his control back. Sunday starter Alex Petrovic picked up his tenth win of the season while throwing six innings and added six strikeouts. His only two earned runs came from home runs, but he showed the command of the standout rotation that helped get the Tigers there in the first place. 

In relief, Auburn only needed one reliever. Ryan Hetzler would pitch the final three innings to pick up his third save of the season. He only allowed one hit and struck out five.

The Knights would go up early from a leadoff solo shot by DeAmez Ross. An inning later, he would bring in another run to double the away side’s lead. Then, another wave of lightning entered the area, and the Tigers were waiting in a rain delay,y tailing once again. 

A quick turnaround is necessary for Thompson’s group, as Auburn will now face Milwaukee at 10:10 local time to make up for the time lost by the four rain delays. The Tigers will look to avenge the 13-8 loss that they suffered in the first game of the regional. 

Last time out, the bats didn’t wake up until it was too late. Now, Thompson will look to take an early lead against a Panther squad that has scored double digits in every game of the NCAA Tournament thus far. The Tigers will also need to win two games to host their super regional next weekend. 

After recording a save, Hetzler will come out to start for Auburn. However, we will see how long Thompson will keep him in the game, especially with a depleted bullpen.

"We've got to move on to the next, quick turnaround and keep trying to compete in this tournament," the Auburn head coach said.

The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ from Plainsman Park, and we will see how far Auburn and Milwaukee will go into the night before a potential late-night stoppage. 

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