Salukis open 11-game road swing at Missouri State on Tuesday

Tuesday, April 9

Springfield, MO

12 p.m.

Southern Illinois University

Missouri State University

Photo by: Will Becque

04/08/2019 | 7:50:00 | Softball

SB at Missouri State Notes

By: Will Becque, SIUSalukis.com

The Southern Illinois University softball team kicks off an 11-game road swing at Missouri State on Tuesday, April 9. The two teams split their doubleheader on March 12. After the Bears won game one, 5-3, with a three-run seventh inning, Southern came back with a vengeance in game two, run-ruling Missouri State, 11-2, in five innings. First pitch Tuesday is set for 12 p.m.

All-time vs. the Bears

• The Salukis lead the all-time series, 54-52 dating back to 1976.
• 20th-year head coach Kerri Blaylock sports a .703 (39-17) lifetime winning percentage against the Bears.
• SIU and Missouri State split their doubleheader on March 12. After the Bears won game one, 5-3, with a three-run seventh inning, Southern came back with a vengeance in game two, run-ruling Missouri State, 11-2, in five innings.
• Southern hit five total home runs, of which four came in the game two win, and pounded out 17 total hits. Jenny Jansen went 4-for-7 with a home run and a double, while Ashley Wood was 3-for-7 with two home runs and five RBI.

Going Streaking

• The Salukis swept the Evansville Purple Aces over the weekend to push their win streak to 10.
• The win streak is not only the longest of the season for SIU, who had a nine-game win streak from Feb. 9-24, but it is its longest since 2011.
• The last time Southern had two 9-plus win streaks in the same season was in 2005, when the Salukis won a program record 47 games to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
• It is tied for the eighth-longest win streak in school history and is tied for the fifth-longest during Kerri Blaylock's tenure as head coach.
• Southern hasn't had an 11-game win streak since 2009, and SIU's last 12 game win streak was during the 2005 season.

Error-less streak

• During SIU's 10-game win streak, Southern hasn't committed an error.
• The Salukis have gone 62-straight innings without an error dating back to March 16.
• SIU currently ranks fourth nationally with a .980 fielding percentage and have committed just 18 errors through 32 games this season.

RPI

• SIU is one of three MVC teams ranked in the top-65 of the RPI. SIU ranks 52nd while Missouri State sits at No. 65.
• It is SIU's highest RPI ranking since 2010, when Southern finished 52nd and posted 11 wins over Top-100 teams.
• Southern cracked the Top-45 in five-straight seasons from 2003-07 and finished as high as 28th in 2005. The Salukis received five-straight at-large bids to the NCAA Tournament during that stretch.
• In 2004, Southern ended the season at No. 33 after it went a ridiculous 24-14 against Top-100 foes, which meant 61.2% of its games that season were played against Top-100 opponents.

Getting closer

• Brianna Jones continues to climb higher up SIU's all-time career pitching list in several categories.
• This past weekend, she became SIU's all-time leader in career appearances by making her 152nd and 153rd career appearance in the circle.
• She also moved into second on SIU's all-time wins list and is three wins shy of Amy Harre's school record of 85.
• She is just 52 innings shy of passing Amy Harre for most innings pitching in school history.
• She is also six strikeouts shy of becoming just the sixth Saluki pitcher with 600-plus career strikeouts.
• Jones leads the MVC in wins (15) and is the only pitcher in program history to twice lead the league in wins (2016, 2018).
• Should Jones lead the league in wins for a third time, she would join Creighton's Tara Oltman (2007-10) as the only pitchers to accomplish the feat.

Jones ranking among active DI Pitchers
4th - Appearances - 153
5th - Victories - .683 win %
5th - Saves - 13
7th - Shutouts - 25
14th - Games Started - 99
14th - Strikeouts - 595

California Cool

• Ashley Wood has been on a tear throughout her freshman season and leads the league in RBI (35) and ranks either first or second amongst MVC freshmen in 10 offensive categories.
• Additionally, She ranks in the top-20 nationally among freshmen in four categories, including fifth in runs batted in per game (1.09).
• Her 35 RBI are already tied for the fourth-most by a freshman in a single-season in program history, while her .347 batting average would be the fifth-best by a freshman in school history. Her seven home runs, meanwhile, are tied with Sydney Jones for the seventh-most for a freshman in school history.

Wood ranking amongst MVC Freshmen
2nd - Batting Average - .347
2nd - Runs - 24
2nd - Hits - 33
2nd - Doubles - 5
2nd - Triples - 1
1st - Home Runs - 7
1st - RBI - 35
2nd - Total Bases - 61
1st - Slugging % - .642
T-1st - HBP - 5

Ranks Nationally Amongst Freshman
20th - Slugging % - .642
5th - RBI per game - 1.09/game
T-5th - RBI - 35
T-17th - Home Runs - 7
T-33rd - Runs - 24
T-55th - Hits - 33

Getting On Base

• The Salukis lead the Missouri Valley Conference, and rank 27th nationally, with a .403 on-base percentage.
• Southern last led the league in on-base percentage in 2014. In 2012, Southern led the league with a .402 on-base percentage- which marked the last season in which SIU finished with a .400 or better on-base percentage.
• Eight Salukis currently have .400 or better on-base percentages, led by Katelyn Massa, who has a .442 on-base percentage.