Salukis open series at Evansville with 4-1 win

Friday, May 13

Evansville, Ind.

6:00 PM

Southern Illinois University

29-19-1, 10-6

Evansville

25-22, 7-9

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Southern Illinois	0	0	0	1	3	0	0	0	0	4	8	3
Evansville	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	7	1

05/13/2016 | 12:00:00 | Baseball

Box Score

May 13, 2016

Box Score

EVANSVILLE, Ind. - Southern Illinois baseball erased an early deficit to defeat Evansville, 4-1, in the series opener at Braun Stadium. With the win, the Salukis (29-19-1, 10-6 MVC) are in sole possession of second place in the Missouri Valley Conference.

"We started the game off slow, but we woke up once they scored in the second inning," head coach Ken Henderson said. "They threw well, but we got some key hits down the stretch that helped us get the win."

The Purple Aces (25-22, 7-9 MVC) took advantage of a Saluki error in the second inning, scoring a run to take a 1-0 lead. The UE lead would not last for too long, as Logan Blackfan's sacrifice fly in the fourth inning scored Greg Lambert to tie the game at 1-1.

It was in the fifth that SIU's offense took command of the game. Ryan Smith opened the inning with a single and was put into scoring position on Ryan Sabo's sacrifice bunt. Southern took the lead on the very next at bat on a Will Farmer RBI single. The Salukis would expand the lead to 4-1 courtesy of a two-run home run from Connor Kopach.

Working with a lead, Chad Whitmer turned in another stellar performance on the mound to earn his sixth win of the season. Whitmer gave the Salukis eight strong innings, allowing one run on six hits with three strikeouts. Ryan Netemeyer entered the game in the ninth and sealed the victory for his 11^th save of the season. Netemeyer is now tied for second all-time in SIU history for saves in a single-season.

"Whitmer was outstanding on the mound for us today," head coach Ken Henderson said. "He was in complete control throughout the game and gave us a chance to win."

Game two between the Salukis and Purple Aces will take place on Saturday, when the two teams play at 2 p.m. RHP Michael Baird will get the start for the Salukis in search of his ninth win of the season.