Saturday, March 18
Carbondale, Ill.
12 p.m.
Southern Illinois University
13-13, 0
6
vs
1
Bradley University
14-12, 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Bradley
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
4
2
Southern Illinois
1
2
0
1
2
0
X
6
5
0
SIU starts MVC play with two wins
03/18/2017 | 6:47:00 | Softball
CARBONDALE, ILL. - The Southern Illinois University softball team (14-13) opened up Missouri Valley Conference play with two wins over Bradley University (14-13). The Salukis took down the Braves, 6-1, in game one and won game two, 2-1, in eight innings.Â
Game one started off on a positive note for the visitors from Peoria. BU led off the game with a single and steal from their lead off hitter. They then followed that up with a walk and a double steal, putting runners at second and third with no outs. Despite the great start, Brianna Jones was able to retire the next three batters with the help of some heads up defense from Sydney Jones, keeping BU scoreless.
"The first inning was the turning point for the whole day," head coach Kerri Blaylock said. "When Sydney came up and got them (Bradley) at third base it changed the complexion of the whole inning to me. And that changed the whole day."
In the bottom half of the first SIU was able to get on the board with a run. Susie Baranski led off with a double over the center fielder's head. Eyrika Brandenburg then bunted her over to third, sacrificing one out. Baranski came in to score on a wild pitch later in the inning, giving SIU a 1-0 lead after one.Â
The Braves went down in order in the top half of the second, giving SIU an opportunity to extend its lead and they took advantage. SIU scored two runs in the second after a costly error was made in center field. It was yet again Baranski who was in the middle of the play, driving the ball out to center.
The two runs made the score, 3-0, and it didn't stay that way for very long. Bradley responded in the top of the third with a run to cut the deficit to two.Â
SIU added one more run to their score in the bottom of the fourth. Freshman Maddy Vermejan led off the Salukis with a single, moved to third  on a sacrifice fly and came into score on a Baranski single..Â
"We play a lot freshman and they've been playing all year long," Blaylock said. "We're 26 games in, so, they aren't really freshman anymore. All of those girls have been playing at such a high level that games like today doesn't overwhelm them."Â
With a three run lead, Brianna Jones (5-7) settled in, shutting out the Braves the remainder of the game. She finished the game with six strikeouts, allowed four hits, and pitched all seven innings for her fourth complete game win of the season. SIU added two more runs to their score before everything was said and done, finished the game with a five-run lead.
Game two of the double header proved to be a pitching duel. The Salukis started junior, Savanna Dover, in the circle and she pitched the second complete game of the day, allowing one run in eight innings. After giving a lead off hit, Dover sent down eight straight, shutting out the Braves on the base paths the first three innings. She kept this momentum going through innings four and five, allowing only two base runners in that span.
"It was the best game she's thrown all year." Blaylock said. "We felt like she was good matchup for them. Allowing just a single run in both games was just fantastic."
In the top of the sixth inning Bradley broke the scoring drought, plating one to take a 1-0 lead over Southern. The Braves started the inning by reaching on an error, followed by back-to-back singles. As soon as Bradley took the lead Dover silenced the Braves, killing their momentum and keeping the game at 1-0.
Going into the bottom half of the seventh the Salukis had two total hits. Trailing, 1-0, the bats finally came alive. Merri Anne Patterson started the inning with a single and later on stole second base for her ninth swipe of the season. Two batters later Vermejan walked, putting runners at the corners with two outs. Next up was Haley Andrus and she picked up the biggest hit of the day, singling to right and scoring Patterson. The single tied the score at one and sent the game to extras.Â
"I felt like we pitched tremendous and played great defense all day long," Blaylock said. "I told the team in the bottom of the seventh that no matter if we win or lose this game they all played a really good. I truly believe if you play the game the right way and play hard, you will get rewarded. And I thought that we played really hard and were in the game the whole time."
In the eighth inning we saw more dominance from Dover on the mound, as she sent down the Braves in order. Southern came to the plate in the bottom half picking up where they left off in the seventh. Baranski led off with a single and was pushed over to second by a sacrifice bunt by Brandenburg. Next up was Harre, who drew her fourth of the day and 25th of the season. With two on and no outs, Katelyn Massa strolled in to the batters box. After seeing two pitches, Massa swung at third, launching it over the left fielder's head for a double. The two-bagger scored Baranski and SIU won, 2-1.Â
"I feel like today was two of the best games we've played all year," "That's what you hope when you come out of non-conference play. You've challenged them and you've been on the road and you hope that all of comes together for moments like today."
The two wins moved SIU back above .500 at 14-13, and 2-0 in MVC play. The team will take their four game winning streak into tomorrow, where the team will have a chance to sweep BU in the final game of the series. The game is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. at Charlotte West Stadium.
Game one started off on a positive note for the visitors from Peoria. BU led off the game with a single and steal from their lead off hitter. They then followed that up with a walk and a double steal, putting runners at second and third with no outs. Despite the great start, Brianna Jones was able to retire the next three batters with the help of some heads up defense from Sydney Jones, keeping BU scoreless.
"The first inning was the turning point for the whole day," head coach Kerri Blaylock said. "When Sydney came up and got them (Bradley) at third base it changed the complexion of the whole inning to me. And that changed the whole day."
In the bottom half of the first SIU was able to get on the board with a run. Susie Baranski led off with a double over the center fielder's head. Eyrika Brandenburg then bunted her over to third, sacrificing one out. Baranski came in to score on a wild pitch later in the inning, giving SIU a 1-0 lead after one.Â
The Braves went down in order in the top half of the second, giving SIU an opportunity to extend its lead and they took advantage. SIU scored two runs in the second after a costly error was made in center field. It was yet again Baranski who was in the middle of the play, driving the ball out to center.
The two runs made the score, 3-0, and it didn't stay that way for very long. Bradley responded in the top of the third with a run to cut the deficit to two.Â
SIU added one more run to their score in the bottom of the fourth. Freshman Maddy Vermejan led off the Salukis with a single, moved to third  on a sacrifice fly and came into score on a Baranski single..Â
"We play a lot freshman and they've been playing all year long," Blaylock said. "We're 26 games in, so, they aren't really freshman anymore. All of those girls have been playing at such a high level that games like today doesn't overwhelm them."Â
With a three run lead, Brianna Jones (5-7) settled in, shutting out the Braves the remainder of the game. She finished the game with six strikeouts, allowed four hits, and pitched all seven innings for her fourth complete game win of the season. SIU added two more runs to their score before everything was said and done, finished the game with a five-run lead.
Game two of the double header proved to be a pitching duel. The Salukis started junior, Savanna Dover, in the circle and she pitched the second complete game of the day, allowing one run in eight innings. After giving a lead off hit, Dover sent down eight straight, shutting out the Braves on the base paths the first three innings. She kept this momentum going through innings four and five, allowing only two base runners in that span.
"It was the best game she's thrown all year." Blaylock said. "We felt like she was good matchup for them. Allowing just a single run in both games was just fantastic."
In the top of the sixth inning Bradley broke the scoring drought, plating one to take a 1-0 lead over Southern. The Braves started the inning by reaching on an error, followed by back-to-back singles. As soon as Bradley took the lead Dover silenced the Braves, killing their momentum and keeping the game at 1-0.
Going into the bottom half of the seventh the Salukis had two total hits. Trailing, 1-0, the bats finally came alive. Merri Anne Patterson started the inning with a single and later on stole second base for her ninth swipe of the season. Two batters later Vermejan walked, putting runners at the corners with two outs. Next up was Haley Andrus and she picked up the biggest hit of the day, singling to right and scoring Patterson. The single tied the score at one and sent the game to extras.Â
"I felt like we pitched tremendous and played great defense all day long," Blaylock said. "I told the team in the bottom of the seventh that no matter if we win or lose this game they all played a really good. I truly believe if you play the game the right way and play hard, you will get rewarded. And I thought that we played really hard and were in the game the whole time."
In the eighth inning we saw more dominance from Dover on the mound, as she sent down the Braves in order. Southern came to the plate in the bottom half picking up where they left off in the seventh. Baranski led off with a single and was pushed over to second by a sacrifice bunt by Brandenburg. Next up was Harre, who drew her fourth of the day and 25th of the season. With two on and no outs, Katelyn Massa strolled in to the batters box. After seeing two pitches, Massa swung at third, launching it over the left fielder's head for a double. The two-bagger scored Baranski and SIU won, 2-1.Â
"I feel like today was two of the best games we've played all year," "That's what you hope when you come out of non-conference play. You've challenged them and you've been on the road and you hope that all of comes together for moments like today."
The two wins moved SIU back above .500 at 14-13, and 2-0 in MVC play. The team will take their four game winning streak into tomorrow, where the team will have a chance to sweep BU in the final game of the series. The game is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. at Charlotte West Stadium.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Jones, Brianna (5-7)
L: Visnic (3-3)
Batting:
RBI: Schroeder 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Kapp 1
SB: Kapp 3 ; Schroeder 1
HBP: Campos 1
Batting:
2B: Baranski, Susie 1 ; Massa, Katelyn 1
RBI: Baranski, Susie 2 ; Jones, Sydney 1
SH: Brandenburg, Eyrika 1 ; Thomas, Jessa 1 ; Fisher, Savannah 1
SF: Jones, Sydney 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Baranski, Susie 1 ; Harre, Shaye 1 ; Decker, Kyleigh 1 ; Vermejan, Maddy 2 ; Pulley, Bailee 1
SB: Vermejan, Maddy 2 ; Fisher, Savannah 1
HBP: Vermejan, Maddy 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
1
R
2
H
1
RBI
0
AB
2
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
INF
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
C/INF
/ SoftballC/DP
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballINF
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