The last regional Auburn baseball hosted ended in disappointment as the Tigers fell to the University of Pennsylvania in extra innings and Southern Miss the following day.

Auburn coach Butch Thompson told members of the media Thursday how that game still resonates with him and that this year’s team will make up for that wrong.

“We hear about two years ago a lot. And we had the experience with a little bit of everything. In 2018, 2019 and 2022 we went 9-0 in three consecutive regionals. So that was really disappointing for the program in 2023 with the extra inning ballgame,” Thompson said Thursday morning.

“The best strategy is to win every game the rest of the year. I would love to win every game, and I meant that, but as soon as you have to go to Plan B you understand a regional could be four or five games, whatever it takes.”

Thompson emphasized how fast starts were the recipe to success in Auburn’s previous regionals prior to 2023.

In preparation this week with the team, he highlighted moments that sparked deep postseason runs including the trip to Ohama in Thompson’s first season.

In 2022 we scored 11 runs at the top of the first inning here to start a regional. That created good momentum for us. First time we punched our ticket to Omaha with our staff in 2019 we scored 13 in the first inning of that regional,” Thompson said.

“So that would be great. But being realistic, we can’t try to do more, we just go to come ready to play. These guys have a plethora of experience this year with a ton of success to give them confidence. Whether they score 11 or none in the first inning Friday, just go in with a good mindset.”

When analyzing Central Connecticut State, the Tigers opponent Friday, Aidan Redehan stands out as one of the best hitters in all of college baseball.

His batting average of .458, nine homeruns and 69 RBIs are all team highs. Thompson broke down the scouting report on how to stop the Blue Devils top hitter.

“We know who he is, and we are aware,” Thompson said. “We are not going to let him beat us in certain situations and try to think of every contingency. We want to execute all ballgame.”

Auburn will meet the winner of Stetson and NC State to conclude the regional. Auburn’s region is paired with the Conway regional, hosted by No. 13 overall seed Coastal Carolina and includes Fairfield, East Carolina and Florida.

With Auburn being one of eight teams with home field advantage through the regional and super regional rounds, Thompson promised Tiger fans this brand of baseball throughout the entire postseason.

“Handle the at bats and dominate the routine play while filling up the strike zone,” Thompson added. “Another thing I ask is to run as hard as we can to first base. We are not changing our game now, but we are doubling down and giving them reminders of what the highest level of play looks like.”

First pitch for NC State and Stetson is scheduled for 1 p.m. Friday. The Tigers game with Central Connecticut State fill start at 6 p.m. and both games will be streaming on ESPN.

Jerry Humphrey III covers Auburn sports forAL.com. You can follow him on X at @Jerryhump3or email him at [email protected].