Auburn Sports Report: February 13

Makayla Martin tossed a shutout to close the Puerto Vallarta College Classic against BYU on Saturday (Photo: Auburn Athletics/Andrew Aaron)

Auburn Softball (3-1) had a successful weekend in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico by picking up three wins over tough programs in #1 Oklahoma, Nebraska, and BYU. Makayla Martin tossed a five-hit shutout in Saturday’s game with BYU, leading the Tigers to a 3-0 win to close the tournament. Martin was named to the all Puerto Vallarta College Challenge team along with fellow pitcher Kaylee Carlson, catcher Carlee Wallace, and first baseman Kendall Veach. Softball returns to Jane B. Moore Field this Thursday to take on SIU-Edwardsville at 6 PM, before hosting the Plainsman Invitational beginning on Friday. Auburn Men’s Basketball (16-9, 6-7) lost a tough conference game on the road Saturday night to Ole Miss, 90-84. Three Tigers reached double-figures in the game, led by another strong performance from Ronnie Johnson off the bench, where he scored a season-high 18 points and eight assists. Anfernee McLemore contributed by bringing in eight boards. Next up for Auburn is a Valentine’s date with the Florida Gators inside Auburn Arena at 6 pm. Auburn Women’s Basketball (15-11, 5-7) had three players reach double-figures in yesterday’s game against Georgia, however, it was not enough to pull out a win. The Bulldogs outrebounded Auburn 47-30 en route to a 57-51 decision. Brandy Montgomery led the Tigers in scoring with 18, Katie Frerking was behind her with 13, Janiah McKay had 12. Auburn took advantage of Georgia turnovers, as they scored 16 points on 22 takeaways. Shooting and bench play was the key in the game, as Auburn only shot 25% from the field (14-57), and were outscored 25-8 on the bench. Auburn looks to rebound this Thursday at 8 PM against Ole Miss in Oxford. Auburn Football has filled another hole in their coaching staff. Larry Porter, a two-time winner of national recruiter of the year, was named as Tight Ends/H-Backs coach as well as recruiting coordinator Saturday by Head Coach Gus Malzahn. Porter comes to Auburn from North Carolina, where he coached special teams and running backs for three years. While there, he improved the Tar Heels run game to a 224 yard per game average in 2015, which is their best output since the mid-1990s. Porter is replacing Scott Fountain, who was relieved of his duties last week. Running backs coach Tim Horton will now handle special teams in addition to his running back duties due to this move. #16 Auburn Gymnastics continues to improve, as they scored 195.725 on Friday against #1 Oklahoma in Oklahoma City as part of the Perfect 10 Challenge. The Tigers scored a season-best 49.150 on the vault, with Taylor Krippner, MJ Rott, and Gracie Day all scoring 9.85s. Krippner also secured a 9.9 on the beam. Lucia Scaglione scored a season-best 9.85 on the floor. Day, as well as Samantha Cerio each scored 9.85 on bars. Auburn will meet Alabama on Friday for the second time this season at 7:30 pm in Tuscaloosa.