This week, Auburn baseball is headed north to Hoover for the SEC Tournament. Due to inclement weather on Tuesday night, the tournament's schedule had to be revised, and the Tigers' debut will come Thursday morning rather than Wednesday evening. Read more about the revised schedule.
Ranked No. 6 out of 16 teams headed into the tournament, Auburn is hoping to win its first SEC Championship since 1998. It would be Head Coach Butch Thompson's first conference title on the Plains.
It's been a great year for the Tigers, who finished the season ranked in the Top 10 and saw multiple players named to All-SEC teams. Here is what Thompson and his team said about the opportunity to play in the SEC tournament this week.
Thompson on the conference tournament, per Auburn Undercover:
"I've always embraced this tournament. I think there's a flood of confidence that comes if you can have a chance to play that last day or win this tournament. It does amazing things for your fans, your program, your players. It makes anything seem possible because there isn't a better collection of teams than in the SEC Tournament."
Pitcher Cam Tilly on getting to start the first game, per Auburn Undercover:
"It just shows the team and the coaches have a lot of confidence in me. I think that just transfers to me. The first four games I have started, every single outing I have continued to build confidence and continued to grow. To see that and give me the opportunity means a lot, for sure."
Outfielder Ike Irish on the team's mindset entering the tournament, per Auburn Rivals:
“We’re experienced, for sure. We’ve been down. We’ve been up. We’ve been everywhere in-between. It’s inning by inning. It’s pitch by pitch. Each pitch is our lives, basically, from here on out. We lose, we go home. We know that.”
The Tigers will begin their SEC Tournament run on Thursday, May 22, at 11:00 a.m.