Baseball Travels to Illinois Tuesday
05/17/2004 | 12:00:00 | Baseball
May 17, 2004
By Jeff Honza
www.SIUSalukis.com
Baseball Travels to Illinois Tuesday
CARBONDALE, Ill. - After winning four of its previous five contests, Southern Illinois (22-28-1) looks to stay hot when it hits the road for its last five games of the regular season. SIU visits Big Ten Conference foe Illinois (20-31) on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m., before wrapping up its Missouri Valley Conference slate with a four-game series at Northern Iowa (22-29, 10-18) on May 20-22.
It's always fun when SIU and Illinois play each other because the head coaches of both teams are such good friends.
The all-time winningest coach in SIU Baseball history and current 14-year head coach at the University of Illinois, Richard "Itch" Jones coached the Salukis for 21 years before taking over the Fighting Illini program in 1991. During his time at SIU, Jones led the Dawgs to three College World Series appearances and seven NCAA Regional berths. He is 439-349 all-time at Illinois.
Meanwhile, Saluki skipper Dan Callahan goes after his 400th career win as a head coach tomorrow against Jones' club. Callahan served as a graduate assistant under Jones before taking over the Saluki helm in 1995. Between a six-year term at Eastern Illinois (1989-94) and his near 10-year stint at SIU, he has recorded a career mark of 399-451-2.
At this time of year last season SIU heated up, and the Salukis seem to be doing so again, as they have gone 12-6 in their last 18 games. Recently coming off a 2-1 series win over UW-Milwaukee, SIU enters Tuesday's game led by Nathan Emrick who is hitting .362 with 33 runs scored, 72 hits, seven doubles, a homer and 28 RBI in 51 starts.
Junior shortstop/pitcher P.J. Finigan is also playing well for the Dawgs. Finigan hit .400 in four games week. Hitting .600 alone in three games against the Panthers, Finigan finished the week by going 6-for-15 with a double, a home run, three runs scored and five RBI. Not to mention, he capped off the UW-Milwaukee series by going 2-for-3 with two runs, a double, a home run, two sacrifice flies and four runs batted in. Additionally, he has gone 10 straight games without committing an error.
SIU leads the all-time series against Illinois, 26-17.
The Salukis and Fighting Illini last met on April 29, 2003, where inclement weather forced the game to be cancelled shortly after a one hour and thirty-three minute rain delay. Illinois had a 7-1 lead when the game was called after four and a half innings.
Junior left-hander Bryan Rueger (1-3) will start on the mound for SIU. Rueger registered his first win of the season against Saint Louis on May 12.