Southern Illinois University
Bradley
Baseball Defeats Bradley, 10-4
04/13/2003 | 12:00:00 | Baseball
April 13, 2003
Peoria, Ill.-All nine hitters reached base, as every part of the Saluki batting order contributed to Southern Illinois' (20-14, 11-4) 10-4 win over Bradley (14-17, 5-9) earlier today at O'Brien Field. SIU, who won the four-game tilt, 3-1, registered a weekend total of 50 hits, including 13 this afternoon.
For SIU, the win marked its 20th overall and league-leading 11th this season. It also polished off the Salukis' third series win over a Valley opponent. The Salukis beat Illinois State (2-1) and Northern Iowa (4-0) prior to today.
If you were to single out a particular section of the fierce SIU lineup, it would have to be the top half, where number one and two hitters P.J. Finigan (2-for-5) and Ross Kowzan (3-for-5) combined to hit .500 with two runs scored, a double and three RBI.
Once Finigan singled in the leadoff spot to start the game, a contagious trend emerged. The unique pattern being -- at least one of SIU's first two hitters in the first, second, third, sixth and eighth innings hit safely and scored.
Jumping out to a 3-1 lead after two innings, Peoria, Ill., native Greg Andrews (5th hitter in lineup) launched a one-out solo home run to begin a three-run rally in the top of the third. After Andrews' smash, which marked his fifth of the season, Nathan Boldt (6th hitter in lineup) and Josh Markle (7th hitter in lineup) drew consecutive walks. Following a Matt Brewer strikeout, Nathan Emrick (9th hitter in lineup) ripped a two-RBI double down the left field line to give the Dawgs a 6-1 advantage.
BU quickly answered with a three-run attack of its own during the bottom half of the third. Brian Meischner drew a leadoff walk and went to third on a Steve Strickler single and a bases on balls by Ryan Kenny. Dan Puente lifted a sacrifice fly to left to score Meischner and a two-out double courtesy of Ryan Sullivan drove in both Strickler and Kenny to narrow the Salukis' margin to 6-4.
Unfortunately for BU, that was all the offense it could muster, as SIU used two more runs in each of the sixth and eighth innings to put the Braves away for good.
Brewer (8th hitter in lineup) led off the Saluki sixth with a single to left and advanced to third on a pair of SAC-bunts by Emrick and Finigan. Emrick's SAC was tainted with an error by BU reliever Brad Garret. With one away, Kowzan dug in and ripped a two-RBI single to left.
Kowzan delivered once more in the eighth, this time with a leadoff double to left. Sal Frisella walked and a SAC-bunt by Toby Barnett gave the Dawgs runners on second and third with one out. Andrews then flied out to center, allowing Kowzan to jog home on the sacrifice, and Frisella to move to third. One final single by Boldt scored Frisella to wrap up the comfortable 10-4 win.
Starter Jerel Deitering struggled through 2.1 innings, where he allowed two hits and all of BU's four runs before Josh Joiner (4-2) picked up the relief win. Joiner threw a scoreless 5.1 innings in which he gave up six hits, walked two and struck out four.
Mike Jakubowski (4-3) took the fall on the mound for the Braves. He scattered seven hits, allowed five earned runs, issued one walk and posted a strikeout in just 2.1 frames.
Along with Kowzan and Finigan, Andrews, Boldt and Emrick followed with at least two hits each to help lead SIU offensively, while Markle and Brewer also added one apiece.
The Salukis will return home to host MVC preseason-favorite Southwest Missouri State in a key four-game series beginning Friday, April 18 at 1 p.m.
Southern Illinois and Bradley Series Notes:
Weekend Warriors
P.J. Finigan
Hit .412 (7-for-17) with six runs scored, two doubles and three RBI.
Nathan Boldt
Began series going a perfect 5-for-5...hit .600 (9-for-15) on the weekend with two runs and two RBI.
Ross Kowzan
Hit .471 (8-for-17) with two runs scored, two doubles, a triple and five RBI.
Greg Andrews
Hit .375 (6-for-16) with five runs scored, two doubles, a homer and three RBI.
Toby Barnett:
Hit .267 (4-for-15) with one run, a triple, a home run and seven RBI.
Nathan Emrick
Hit .714 (5-for-7) with two runs, a pair of doubles and four RBI in three starts as designated hitter.
Jake Alley
Pitched a shutout through seven innings of work in Friday's series-opener...in his eighth start, the native of Anna, Ill., struck out six batters for the third time this season...also posted his third win in his last three starts, which have seen him give up a combined 18 hits, nine walks and three runs in 22 straight innings...additionally, he has registered 17 strikeouts and just one earned run during that span.
Bryan Rueger
Moved to a perfect 4-0 this season after picking up a win in game one of Saturday's doubleheader...struck out three batters, while scattering seven hits in four frames of a seven-inning contest.
Kudos to the Skipper
SIU Head Coach Dan Callahan recorded his fourth series win over BU in nine years at the Saluki helm. The series win also marked the school's 13th all-time versus BU, as Callahan now boasts a 20-15 record against the Braves.
Hit Parade Coming Your Way
SIU registered a series-high 50 hits against BU this weekend. The Salukis who belted out 13 hits in game one, 14 in game two, 10 in game three and 13 in game four, surpassed their previous series-high of 44 hits done against Northern Iowa on March 21-23.
Two-Out Magic
SIU out-scored BU 30-15. Four of those tallies came with two out in the second game of the series. The Salukis also put 10 runs on the board to begin (Friday) and end (Sunday) the series.
Balk Talk
The Saluki pitching staff had five balks in the series, including three from starting left-hander Bryan Rueger in game two. Rueger, who won the decision on the hill, had three balks in his four innings pitched.
Pen-damonium
SIU's bullpen did another fantastic job of keeping opposing hitters off-stride this weekend. Of the Braves' 15 runs, only one was given up by Saluki relievers.
Other Notes of Interest
There were a total of 86 hits in the series (SIU 50, BU 36); BU left at least 10 runners on base in three of the four games; BU's four runs in the bottom of the fifth of game three, marked the most the Braves scored in a single inning all season; Braves freshman Collin Walker pitched a complete gem in game three, BU's only win of the series. In nine innings, Walker struck out six and allowed two runs, despite giving up 10 hits.
One-Pitch Wonders
Left-hander Eric Haberer entered game three with at least one out and a minimum of two runners on base in the bottom of the eighth. Haberer threw one pitch that forced BU right fielder Jason Newburger to hit into a double play. In doing so, he became the third SIU pitcher that has thrown a single pitch to get out of jam the Salukis' last four games. Adam Snyder (B6th) and ace Jake Alley (B8th) also threw one offering to escape two-out, two-baserunner scenarios at Southeast Missouri State (4/9).
Dawg-Gone It!
Rotary Smith and Johnny Bench Award candidate Toby Barnett saw his hitting streak end at 19 games Saturday when he went 0-for-4 in the nightcap of a doubleheader. During the impressive stretch, which began on March 12 at Oklahoma, the native of W. Kallaroo, Australia registered 10 multiple-hit games, seven multiple-RBI contests, three doubles, 15 runs scored, 30 hits, six home runs and 23 runs batted in. The 19-game span lasted exactly one month.
Family Reunion
The parents of Bradley outfielder Rene Aqueron and Southern Illinois catcher Toby Barnett watched their sons play for their respective teams for the first time this weekend. Aqueron's parents, Rene and Martha, travelled from his native country of Puerto Rico, while Barnett's guardians, Graham and Cheryl, visited the United States from Australia.
