Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Baseball hosts Illinois State in MVC-opener this weekend
03/22/2007 | 12:00:00 | Baseball
March 22, 2007
By Jeff Honza
www.SIUSalukis.com
Dates: Friday-Sunday, Mar. 23-25, 2007
Series Schedule: Friday, 2 p.m.;
Saturday, 2 p.m.; Sunday, 1 p.m., CST.
Site: Abe Martin Field (2,000)
Series History: SIU leads, 73-69
Head Coaches: SIU: Dan Callahan (338-351-1, 160-194-1 MVC/13th Year).
ILS: Jim Brownlee (99-132, 167-186 MVC (UE/ILS)/5th Year).
Radio: WCIL-1020 AM, www.siusalukis.com
Livestats: www.siusalukis.com
Illinois State Series Notes in PDF Format
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PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
Friday - Jordan Powell (SIU), RHP vs. Ryan Copeland (ISU), LHP
Saturday - Cody Adams (SIU), RHP vs. Luke Baughman (ISU), RHP
Sunday - Shawn Joy (SIU), LHP vs. Mike Hlavacek (ISU), RHP
CALLAHAN IN CONFERENCE-OPENERS
SIU opens league play against Illinois State for the first time under head coach Dan Callahan. The The Salukis are 8-4 all-time in conference-openers with Callahan at the helm. Following is a list of those games:
1995 at Bradley - W, 9-8
1996 vs. Bradley - L, 1-14
1997 at Evansville - L, 3-5
1998 vs. Creighton - W, 9-5
1999 at Indiana State - W, 7-3
2000 at Wichita State - L, 3-9
2001 vs. Wichita State - L, 4-9
2002 vs. Bradley - W, 10-2
2003 vs. Northern Iowa - W, 10-6
2004 vs. Bradley - W, 4-2
2005 vs. Northern Iowa - W, 7-3
2006 at Wichita State - W, 4-2
The Salukis have started the Valley season with a win in each of the last five years. SIU began its conference slate at home in five of the last six seasons.
LAST TIME AGAINST ILLINOIS STATE
SIU went from a half-game out of first-place to needing to win one game to make the MVC Tournament a year ago. And, the must-win situation came against the Redbirds. After being swept by Evansville, the Salukis headed to Normal, and barely punched their ticket to Wichita with a 10-5 win in game two of the series. SIU went on to lose the three-game set and go two-and-out at the tournament.
HOT DAWGS
SIU is 15-3 in its last 18 games, and carries a four-game winning streak into its MVC debut. Currently sporting an overall record of 16-6, the Salukis hold the second-most wins in the conference. Four teams, including Wichita State (17), SIU (16), Evansville (14) and Creighton (12) have 10 or more wins in the league this year.
HOW SWEEP IT IS
SIU posted three series sweeps this season, all of which came at Abe's Place. The Salukis swept Central Michigan (Feb. 23-25), Youngstown State (Mar. 10-11) and Western Michigan (Mar. 16-18). Between the 2006 and 2007 campaigns, SIU has compiled a total of six series sweeps, only one in league play (Indiana State).
THIS WEEK IN THE VALLEY
Illinois State at Southern Illinois
Creighton at Evansville
Indiana State at Wichita State
Northern Iowa at Missouri State
Idle - Bradley
HOME SWEET HOME
SIU is a near-perfect 11-1 with four series wins at Abe Martin Field this season. The Salukis are 52-18 (.743) on their home diamond since 2005. SIU swept Central Michigan (Feb. 23-25), Youngstown State (Mar. 10-11) and Western Michigan (Mar. 16-18), and won two of three against Northern Illinois (Mar. 2-4) in Carbondale this year. The 11-1 home start is the best under head coach Dan Callahan.
KELLY IS STREAKIN'< the="" league's="" second-leading="" hitter,="">Mark Kelly (.452), is currently on an 18-game hitting streak. Kelly, who hails from Hanover Park, Ill., has gone 37-for-79 (.468) with 13 runs scored, five doubles, a home run and 24 RBI during that stretch. He registered mutiple-hits in 10 of his last 13 games, including six in a row from Mar. 7-17. Kevin Koski's 36-game hitting streak (Mar. 29, 2005 to Feb. 11, 2006) stands as the longest in school history. Kelly is second to Bradley's Ryan Curry (.468).
HEAVY METAL
SIU pounded out a total of 167 hits in its last 13 games. The Salukis averaged nearly 13 hits (12.8) per game and registered 15 or more hits four times during that span. SIU has seen its average climb 92 points, from .205 to .297 in its last 13 games. Not to mention, the Dawgs are 12-1 when out-hitting opponents this season.
COMEBACK KIDS
SIU has scored first 10 times, and is 8-2 when doing so. The Dawgs have come-from-behind in 10 of their 16 victories.
KOSKI EXPECTED TO RETURN THIS WEEKEND
Kevin Koski, who has been day-to-day since injuring his left hamstring in game one of the Youngstown State series (Mar. 10), is expected to play against the Redbirds this weekend. Koski did not play in consecutive games for the first time in his SIU career when he missed the Middle Tennessee State series on Mar. 13-14. He made 143-straight starts in the Saluki outfield prior to that series. Koski returned to the lineup in game one of the Western Michigan series, but left the game early and hasn't played since.
TOP OF ORDER PRODUCING
Aaron Roberts, Kevin Koski, Adam Hills and Mark Kelly have been producing at the top of the lineup this season. The four are hitting a combined .464 (91-for-196) with 47 runs, 16 doubles, two home runs and 37 RBI out of the one, three and four holes.
TWO-OUT MAGIC
SIU is hitting .347 (26-for-75) in two-out situations over its last six games. The Salukis have scored 14 runs in such scenarios, with Tyler Lairson going 6-for-10 with four RBI along the way.
ADAMS GOES FOR SEVENTH WIN IN A ROW
True sophomore right-hander Cody Adams is 6-0 after earning a win in each of his starts this season. Adams, who hails from Viola, Ill., tops the MVC in wins and strikeouts (39). He became the first Saluki pitcher to go undefeated in six starts since Cliff McIntosh did it in 1988.
THE CHASE IS ON
Bob Schroeck (1979), Dick Langdon (1971) and John Susce (1968) are currently SIU's all-time single-season leaders in pitching wins with 12 apiece. Cody Adams is halfway there after beating Western Michigan on Mar. 17.
SIXTH, SEVENTH AND EIGHTH
SIU has scored 51 percent (70 of 137) of its runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings through 22 games this season. The Dawgs have put up 27 runs in the sixth, 19 in the seventh and 24 in the eighth. SIU is outscoring its opponents 70-40 in that span.
GIVE IT UP FOR THE FROSH
True freshman Aaron Roberts hit .556 (15-for-27) with 10 runs scored, a triple, one RBI, a .630 slugging percentage, a .571 on-base percentage and four stolen bases in the last six games. A native of Chatham, Ill., Roberts extended his hitting streak to nine games (vs. Murray State, 3/21), the longest by a Saluki freshman this season. He registered multiple-hits in five of six games, and went a perfect 5-for-5 against Murray State Wednesday. Roberts moved from right to center after Kevin Koski was removed from the lineup due to a hamstring injury. He was named to the College Baseball Foundation's Honor Roll Tuesday.
