JACKSONVILLE – No. 6 Auburn escaped Rudy Abbott Field at Jim Case Stadium on Tuesday night with a 4-3 win over Jacksonville State in front of the third largest crowd at The Jim.

The Tuesday night showdown with the national-ranked Tigers drew 1,588 to the ballpark.

After Jax State rallied from a 3-0 deficit to draw even in the eighth inning with a solo home run by senior Drew Collins, the Tigers connected on a pinch hit, two-out home run by Lucas Steele in the ninth. Ben Schorr tossed a clean ninth inning to preserve the road win for AU.

The Tigers broke up a scoreless deadlock in the fourth inning after stringing together six-of-their-nine hits in the frame to score three runs off Jax State starter, Maddox McDougall.

The Gamecocks' bullpen kept AU off the scoreboard until the ninth inning. Junior Ryan Geraghty tossed three innings and collected three strikeouts. Redshirt junior Jackson Sleeper fanned a pair of Tigers but was saddled with the tough loss after the home run in the ninth.

AU starter Christian Chatteron was on pace for a perfect game until an infield single in the seventh from Collins Jax State would plate a pair of runs in the frame after a Sam Silas fielder's choice and an AU wild pitch.

Jax State will have a quick turnaround as it will head west to the state of New Mexico this weekend for a Conference USA series with New Mexico State. The series in Las Cruces, N.M. will start on Thursday evening. First pitch is set for 7 p.m. CT.

All three games will be streamed on ESPN+ and carried on the Gamecock Sports Network.