Bri Bombs: Auburn slugger Bri Ellis chases freshman home run record

Bri Bombs: Auburn slugger Bri Ellis chases freshman home run recordBri Bombs: Auburn slugger Bri Ellis chases freshman home run record
Elaina Eichorn/AU Athletics

Bri Ellis touches home after another Bri Bomb

AUBURN, Ala. – Of the 36 hits Bri Ellis has contributed for Auburn softball this season, 18 have left the ballpark.

"The best feeling in the world, for sure," said Ellis, one of 25 finalists for National Freshman of the Year. "It's really satisfying off the bat of course."

At 5-foot-10 and having taken up weight training upon arriving at Auburn, Ellis can still crank homers even without making perfect contact.

"There are some I don't barrel up and they still end up going," she said. "I don't really know how that works. The ones I barrel up, that's the goal."

The SEC co-leader in home runs, Ellis ranks No. 8 nationally.

"At the end of the day, it's really just a number," she said. "Instead of playing just for the number, I'd rather play for each game, getting runs for my team.

"If the best way I can get runs for my team is to hit it over the fence, I've just got to hit it over the fence."Slugging Percentage: Half of Bri's 36 hits have been home runs. Her .810 SP ranks No. 2 in Auburn single-season history

With her 18 "Bri Bombs," as Auburn fans refer to Ellis' home runs, the first baseman has tied Kasey Cooper's freshman program record.

"I've been hitting home runs my whole life," Ellis said. "Now, people actually notice and keep track of what you're doing.

"To look back at the season and see how far I've come from the fall especially, and to be able to put up the kind of numbers as someone so great as Kasey Cooper is really cool and awesome."

"She's been so fun to watch," said Cooper, who will analyze Auburn's games on Saturday and Sunday vs. Georgia for SEC Network. "The way the ball comes off her bat, it is impressive, her sheer power. I remember one of her home runs, I was commentating, it took out a branch."

Like Cooper, who's completing her third year at UAB School of Medicine, Ellis majors in mechanical engineering in Auburn University's Ginn College of Engineering.

"She is so strong and just a competitor," Cooper said. "It's a pleasure to watch her play."

Ranked No. 20 nationally in the 2021 recruiting class, Ellis made physical and mental adjustments when transitioning to Southeastern Conference softball.

"We've always seen good pitching here and there," Ellis said of her time in high school and travel ball. "But now, every game there's good pitching and you've always got to be on your best.

"For me, I've figured out that if my mind is right in a game, it's going to be a good game. It's a matter of calming myself down and not getting too worked up and shutting everyone out during my at-bats and just focusing on the ball.

"See the ball, hit the ball and whatever happens happens."

Ellis traveled nearly 700 miles to Auburn from her home in Houston, Texas, a journey she says was worth every mile.

"I think it's the most beautiful campus out of any of them," said Ellis, favorably comparing Auburn to the campuses she's visited during her freshman season. "I still think we're unmatched. It's like a breath of fresh air.

"It's a nice place to be and there are nice people here. Everyone's supporting each other. It's a lot of the sports teams supporting each other. You'll see basketball and football players, and swim and dive (student-athletes) at our games. As softball players, that's unheard of.

"It's a great atmosphere and I really like it here. I honestly couldn't see myself going to school anywhere else. I'm really glad I came here."

Auburn softball fans, too, are glad Bri came to the Plains.

So when pitchers give Bri their tired fastballs, poor changeups and huddled rise balls, they should not be surprised when they land hundreds of feet from home plate at a place where softballs yearn to breathe free.

Ellis Island.
 'A great atmosphere': Bri Ellis enjoys playing at Auburn's Jane B. Moore Field. 


Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer