Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Softball Travels To Drake For First MVC Road Series
03/26/2004 | 12:00:00 | Softball
March 26, 2004
By Lou Antoine
SIUSalukis.com
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Following a doubleheader sweep over Southeast Missouri State last night, Southern Illinois (21-6, 3-0 MVC) takes its 3-0 Missouri Valley Conference mark and nine-game win streak on the road to face Drake (14-11, 2-1 MVC) in Des Moines, Iowa March 27-28. The games will be the first MVC road contests for the Salukis in 2004.
SIU and Creighton are tied for first in the Valley with 3-0 records, followed by Wichita State (3-1) and Drake. The Bulldogs started the season 7-0, went 2-7 the following nine games, and are 5-4 in the last nine, including a split with Indiana Tuesday and a doubleheader loss to Illinois (2-0 & 1-0) on Wednesday.
"I think the reason they slowed down after the hot start is that Katie Shimon, one of their pitchers has battled some back problems and hasn't thrown as much as she really makes their team go. Jessica Hicks (9-7) is also a good pitcher who beat Evansville a couple times last week," said Kerri Blaylock, SIU head coach.
"Drake runs a lot and has already broken the team stolen base record in March, so that tells you how much they are stealing bases. They have a lot of lefties in their lineup and they try to get after you and pressure you. Coach (Rich) Calvert's team's are tough and they will run you to death. We just need to go up and play our game."
The Salukis beat SEMO 3-0 and 3-1 last night and Blaylock hopes the momentum of their sweep can carry over to the weekend against Drake.
"We just need to remain consistent and keep them off the bases. Good pitching can slow down good hitting and keep runners off base, so I feel good about staff going into the series. This year I have a number of people who can step up and pitch well, so I feel confident that our pitching will be a strength," added Blaylock.
Amy Harre (8-1) and Ashley Hamby (4-1) each picked up wins last night and Cassidy Scoggins earned a save in two innings in relief of Hamby. Amanda Clifton (2-for-2, 2 RBI), Katie Louis (2-for-3, 2 RBI) Maria Damico (2-for-5, RBI) and Kelly Creek (2-for-6) all played a key role in the sweep.
The Salukis swept Northern Iowa to open MVC play last weekend, winning 5-1, 1-0 and 4-1. Offensively, Kelly Creek (.500), Katie Jordan, (.375, 2 HR, 3 RBI), Haley Viefhaus (.375, 2 2B, 2 RBI), Jenny Doehring (.333) and Katie Louis (.333, 2B) led the Saluki attack. Cassidy Scoggins (1-0, 0.00 ERA), Alison Thompson (1-0, 0.00) and Ashley Hamby (1-0, 0.00) all earned their first MVC wins with out allowing an earned run.
SIU leads the series against Drake 34-14-1. The Salukis are 8-1 against the Bulldogs under Blaylock, including a split in 2003 (SIU won 12-1 and lost 2-1) at West Stadium. The Salukis will play a doubleheader on Saturday at 12 p.m. and a single game on Sunday at 12 p.m. at Buel Field to wrap up the series.
