Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Baseball Heads to No. 29 Oklahoma This Week
03/10/2003 | 12:00:00 | Baseball
March 10, 2003
Callahan Reaches 200 Wins
Dan Callahan picked up his 200th career win as head coach of the Salukis Sunday against Iowa. As a result, he became the third head coach in SIU history to post 200 or more career wins. Callahan, who now stands at 200-247 in his ninth season at the helm, joins Glen "Abe" Martin (278-176-2) and Richard "Itch" Jones (738-345-5) in the elite few.
Series History
SIU is 6-7 all-time against the University of Oklahoma. Under former head coach Richard "Itch" Jones, the Salukis played all 13 meetings against the Sooners from 1976-79. One of SIU's most exciting wins over Oklahoma was at the 1977 NCAA Midwest Regional, where the Dawgs went 3-0 after beating Texas A&M (4-1), Oklahoma (7-3) and Michigan (9-0). Following regional play, SIU advanced to the College World Series, which currently stands as the last time the Salukis made a trip to Omaha, Neb.
Conference Call
The University of Oklahoma marks the fifth team from a different league that SIU will face in its non-conference season. Oklahoma, a member of the Big 12 Conference, joins Centenary College (TAAC), South Florida (Conference USA), Northern Illinois (Mid-American) and Iowa (Big Ten), who the Dawgs played earlier this year.
Figure Eight
Under Head Coach Dan Callahan, SIU is 2-8 against schools from the Big 12. The last time SIU defeated a Big 12 opponent was in 2002 at the Ron Maestri Classic, where the Salukis beat Missouri, 8-4. Prior to that win, the Dawgs had lost eight straight games to Big 12 foes. Interestingly enough, Callahan's other win over a Big 12 opponent also came against Missouri (14-1) in 1995.
Maybe Not Statistically, but Nice Save
Tied 3-3 heading into the top of the ninth inning Sunday against Iowa, hard-throwing, right-hander P.J. Finigan entered the game looking to pick up his third save of the season. Instead, the sophomore from Springfield, Ill., registered his first win. After loading the bases with no outs and allowing the game-tying run, Finigan beared down to strike out three straight Hawkeye hitters to get out of the jam. Standing at 1-0 with two saves in four appearances this season, Finigan has struck out six batters in just 4.0 innings.
Frisella Delivers Walk Off Smash
Senior right fielder Sal Frisella hit a two-run walk off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to give SIU a thrilling 5-3 win over Iowa Sunday. Frisella's home run, which marked his team-leading second of the season, was part of a 3-for-9 effort over the three-game series. Hitting .333 on the weekend, Frisella also scored two runs and had two RBI. In addition, his game-winning round-tripper, which sailed over the left field wall, came on a full count and with two out in the ninth.
Mighty Offensive
SIU's offense may not be as consistent as it wants to be so far this season, but one thing is for certain - the Dawgs have proven they can strike at any time. Evidence to support the claim is that there have been three occasions this season where SIU has registered between five to eight hits, only to bounce back with 10 or more in its next game. As a matter of fact, the third time this happened was last weekend when the Salukis posted eight hits in game two against Iowa (3/8), before countering with a 10-hit attack in game three. Holding a season-high of 15 hits done at Centenary on Feb. 16, SIU is 4-1 on the year when putting 10 or more pokes in the hit column. In addition, the Salukis are hitting .265 and have posted 10 or more hits in five of their first 11 games.
Climbing the Charts
Sal Frisella's two-run homer against Iowa Sunday marked the 20th of his career, putting him in a three-way tie for ninth on the school's all-time career home run list. Frisella joins Barry O'Sullivan (1967-69) and Jeff Stanek (1999-02) in the ninth-place spot.
SIU Hurlers Rolling
After giving up an average of nearly 11 hits per game in its first four contests this season, the SIU pitching staff has found its rhythm as of late. In four of their last five games, Saluki pitchers have held opponents to just seven hits, while striking out anywhere from two to eight batters. In addition, SIU hurlers have seen their earned run average drop from 7.15 to 5.91.
Rockin' Rueger
Sophomore left-hander Bryan Rueger made an impressive first appearance Sunday against Iowa. After relieving starter Tyler Norrick in the fourth, Rueger held the Hawkeyes scoreless for three of the next four innings and retired 10-of-11 Iowa batters, including nine straight. In four innings, Rueger posted two strikeouts, while allowing just two hits and one run.
Kowzan Breaks Slump
Senior centerfielder Ross Kowzan snapped a 0-for-14 slump Saturday in the Salukis' doubleheader against Iowa. Kowzan went a near-perfect 5-for-6 with a double on the day. Hitting just .148 prior to last weekend, Kowzan now boasts a .237 clip.
Comeback Kids
SIU's 4-2 win over Iowa (3/8) marked the fourth time this season the Salukis have come back to win a game after trailing by at least one run after the game's first three innings. SIU also fell behind early on to Centenary College (2/16), South Florida (2/22) and Iowa (3/8) before rallying to post 12-9, 4-3 and 4-2 wins, respectively.
The Chase is On
Senior right-hander Jake Alley struck out a season-high six batters en route to his first win of the season Saturday against Iowa. In his third start, Alley averaged one strikeout per inning over the course of 6.2 frames. Allowing just four hits and two runs, he fanned three of the Hawkeyes' first four batters and retired eight of their first 10 to open the game. Alley, the team's leader with 12 strikeouts this season, stands 55 Ks away from becoming the school's all-time career leader in strikeouts. As of now, he ranks sixth on the all-time list with 224 career whiffs. Alley is chasing Jason Frasor (1996-99) who currently holds the school's all-time career strikeout record with 278 Ks.
Sweet Series
SIU defeated its first Big Ten opponent since 1999 this past weekend when it posted a 2-1 series win over the University of Iowa. The series win, which came in the Dawgs' home opener, marked SIU's second of the season after registering a 2-1 series win at Centenary College (2/15-16).
Lightning Boldt
Junior transfer Nathan Boldt has registered two hits in three of his last five games. The third baseman from Mt. Vernon, Ill., went 2-for-5 with two runs scored in the Dawgs' series closer against Iowa Sunday. Hitting .302, Boldt is tied for second on the team in hits with 13.
About the Salukis
SIU, who is on its spring break, carries a two-game winning streak into this week's games at Oklahoma. Heading into Tuesday's contest, the Salukis are led by designated hitter Tyler Schooley (.400) who went 2-for-3 Sunday against Iowa. Schooley is followed by first baseman Carl Heuer (.364), second baseman Greg Andrews (.333), right fielder Sal Frisella (.333) and third baseman Nathan Boldt (.302) who are also hitting over .300 this season. On the mound, several pitchers have been throwing effectively as of late, including starters Jake Alley and Tyler Norrick and relief pitchers Bryan Rueger and Adam Snyder. Freshman lefty Snyder, however, has thrown five consecutive scoreless innings.
Matchup Note
At certain times this season, SIU has been hurt by a particular half of the opposing team's batting order. For instance, this past weekend against Iowa, Saluki pitchers scattered a total of 10 hits combined to the Hawkeyes' six, seven and eight hitters. Included in that total were three straight pinch-hit singles. This week appears to be just the opposite, as the Dawgs will look to focus on keeping the top half of the Sooners' lineup in check as leadoff hitter Matt Arkison (.345), number two hitter Reggie Willits (.385) and number three hitter Eddie Cornejo (.378) are hitting a blistering .345 or better.
About the Sooners
The No. 29th-ranked Oklahoma University is coming off a 2-1 series win over Michigan last weekend in Norman, Okla. Three Sooners currently rank among the Big 12 in batting average, including Reggie Willits (14th, .385), Eddie Cornejo (18th, .378) and Tyler Johnson (24th, .357).
Matchup Note
As a team, Oklahoma is hitting .294 with 15 home runs and 72 RBI. The Sooner offense recorded double-digit hit totals in all four games last week to raise its season average by 33 points. OU produced its highest hit total (17) and run total (13) of the season in the Sooners' 13-6 victory over TCU on Tuesday.
Gametracker
You can follow both SIU-Oklahoma games this week through the Sooners' official website gametracker. Visit www.soonersports.com and choose baseball. Then, click on schedules and select the gametracker link for the game you wish to follow. Live stats will be kept for both contests.
On Deck
SIU will return home this weekend to host Central Michigan in a three-game series on Saturday-Sunday, March 15-16. The Salukis and Chippewas will square off in noon doubleheader on Saturday, before closing out the series with a single game at noon on Sunday.
