Tomscha hits solo homer as Tigers win in walk-off fashion on opening day

Video Courtesy of Auburn Athletics

AUBURN — It didn’t take long for Damek Tomscha to make his presence felt on the Plains.

Tomscha, a JUCO transfer from Iowa Western CC, started at third base for the Tigers and had two crucial hits and two RBIs, including the game-winning solo home run, as Auburn defeated Maine, 3-2, before a crowd of 4,021 at Plainsman Park Friday afternoon.

“That was pretty special,” said Tomscha of his walk-off blast, the 21st walk-off dinger for Auburn since 1979, which came on a 3-1 fastball from Maine’s Shaun Coughlin. “Home runs are mistakes and that’s what happened.”

Auburn got four innings of strong relief out of the bullpen, as four pitchers combined to allow one run on three hits and one walk with six strikeouts. Conner Kendrick pitched two scoreless innings with three strikeouts and Terrance Dedrick picked up the win though he recorded only one out.

Maine’s Sam Balzano hit a one-out double to left and scored on an RBI-double to deep left-center by Colin Gay (2-for-4) to tie the game at 2 in the top of the seventh. Tommy Lawrence allowed two runs on seven hits and two walks with four strikeouts in seven innings for the Black Bears.

Tomscha (2-for-4) gave the Tigers a 2-1 in the bottom of the sixth, knocking the go-ahead RBI-single through the left side to score Garrett Cooper. Cooper (1-for-4 with an RBI), who was nearly picked off before Tomscha gave the Tigers the lead, hit two-out  RBI double to score Jackson Burgreen and tie the game at 1.

The Tigers had three outs on the bases with two players caught stealing and one picked off second.

Right fielder Sam Gillikin made an outstanding grab against the fence to rob Maine’s Scott Heath of a three-run home run in the fifth which would have given the Black Bears a 4-0 lead.

“Sam Gillikin went up and climbed the wall there and made a tremendous – what an athletic play,” Auburn coach John Pawlowski said.

Burgreen, a freshman, got the start in left field over Cullen Wacker, who was suspended for unspecified reasons, and led off his career with a double.

“You can be freshman in the dugout before the game but you step in between the lines you can’t be a freshman anymore, said Burgreen, who went 2-for-4. “You got to forget about everything and act like you know what you’re doing.

“I got pretty hot about two weeks ago and I didn’t know honestly until before the game today that I was starting and battling leadoff.”

Daniel Koger went five innings and allowed one unearned run on three hits and two walks with two hit batters and two strikeouts.

“Not his best stuff, he knows that,” Pawlowski said. “Command was a very average for him and we talked about the ability to go out there and locate the fastball. Not the great stuff we’ve seen from him but we know he’s capable.”