Saturday, February 20
Jacksonville, Ala.
11 a.m.
Southern Illinois University
2-0
4
vs
3
Tennessee Tech
0-1
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Tennessee Tech
0
0
1
2
0
0
0
0
0
3
9
1
SIU
0
0
1
0
1
2
0
0
X
4
7
0
Salukis improve to 2-0 with 4-3 win over Tennessee Tech
02/20/2021 | 2:04:00 | Baseball
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - The SIU baseball team improved to 2-0 with a 4-3 win over Tennessee Tech on Saturday at Jim Case Stadium on the Jacksonville State University campus.
Brad Harrison, who started the game for SIU, got out of a bases-loaded jam in the first inning. Tennessee Tech (0-1)Â struck first with a two-out RBI in the third inning. SIU (2-0) struck right back in the bottom half. Cody Cleveland led off with a double, and Tony Rask bunted him to third. Ian Walters drove home Cleveland with an RBI groundout.Â
Tech took a 3-1 lead with a two-run homer in the fourth inning, but SIU kept them off the board for the rest of the game to complete the comeback. Noah Farmer, who has battled injuries during his career and did not pitch at all in 2020, had one of his best outings of his Saluki career. He entered in relief of Harrison in the sixth inning and kept the Golden Eagles off the board. He then faced the minimum in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings to earn the win.Â
"That was an exciting moment to see Noah Farmer on a game mound for first time in a long time," SIU head coach Lance Rhodes said. "To go out there and pitch as well as he did, after all the hard work and rehab that he's done, was awesome to see."
Farmer's four-inning outing saved SIU's bullpen for tomorrow's 10 a.m. game against Alabama State. After SIU used three bullpen arms in yesterday's win over Jacksonville State, Harrison and Farmer were both outstanding today.Â
"Brad did what he usually does. He scattered hits and went deep into a ballgame. He's so experienced that he never lets any situation phase him. He continues to make pitches and gets us out of the inning," Rhodes said. "Noah had been built up as a starter and could have started this weekend. We thought he would be a valuable asset in the bullpen, and pitch-count wise, we knew he could go multiple innings. He has thrown it so well all preseason. There was some anxiousness because he has battled through so much, but he has thrown so well all preseason that it wasn't a surprise that he threw well today."
SIU got a run back on a wild pitch in the fifth inning. After Farmer got the Salukis out of the jam in the sixth, the Salukis took the momentum into the bottom half of the inning. Vinni Massaglia drew a leadoff walk but was still on first base with two outs. Grey Epps came through with a clutch pinch hit two-out RBI triple to tie the game, 3-3. Rask drove in the game-winning run with an RBI single.
SIU has one of the country's smallest roster with just 31 players, but the depth of those 31 was on display during the program's 2-0 start. Yesterday, Grey Epps and Austin Ulick started at second base and catcher, respectively, Epps drew two walks and scored a run. Ulick came through with a two-out, two-run double. Today, Cody Cleveland and Tony Rask started in those spots. Cleveland hit a double and scored, and Rask went 2-for-2 with a run scored, a sac bunt, and the clutch two-out go-ahead RBI single.Â
"The 8-9 spots in our lineup today were huge," Rhodes said. "Cody Cleveland had a big double. Grey (Epps) pinch hit for him because we had a good matchup, and he absolutely crushed a ball to tie the game. Tony (Rask) had a great day. He caught really well, blocked well, threw a runner out. His hits were two huge knocks."
The Salukis played error-free behind Harrison and Farmer. SIU, who has one of the most experienced infields in the country, was outstanding defensively, highlighted by Ian Walters' game-ending defensive play. In a one-run game in the ninth inning, Walters made a diving stop down the third-base line to take and made the throw all the way across the diamond to beat the runner. Instead of the potential tying run in scoring position in the ninth, Walters ended the game with the web gem and secured SIU's 2-0 start to the season. SIU's infield has not committed an error through two games and converted 22 ground ball outs.
UP NEXT: SIU closes out the weekend on Sunday at 10 a.m. against Alabama State. SIU is looking to start a season 3-0 for the first time since 2017 and for only the second time since 1979.
NOTES: Ian Walters' 16-game hitting streak, which dated back to last season, was snapped, but he reached base for the 24th-straight game, which dates back to late in the 2019 season ... SIU started the season 2-0 for the first time since 2017 and for only the second time since 2002 ... SIU has won seven-straight games, dating back to last season ... Eleven different Salukis already have at least one hit through two games ... Farmer and Harrison combined to throw 67% strikes (91 of 136) ... SIU and Tennessee Tech were originally scheduled to play a three-game series to start the season in Cookeville, Tenn. Weather forced the teams to move to a four-team round robin hosted by Jacksonville State ... Philip Archer has reached base in 13-straight games, dating back to last year.
Brad Harrison, who started the game for SIU, got out of a bases-loaded jam in the first inning. Tennessee Tech (0-1)Â struck first with a two-out RBI in the third inning. SIU (2-0) struck right back in the bottom half. Cody Cleveland led off with a double, and Tony Rask bunted him to third. Ian Walters drove home Cleveland with an RBI groundout.Â
Tech took a 3-1 lead with a two-run homer in the fourth inning, but SIU kept them off the board for the rest of the game to complete the comeback. Noah Farmer, who has battled injuries during his career and did not pitch at all in 2020, had one of his best outings of his Saluki career. He entered in relief of Harrison in the sixth inning and kept the Golden Eagles off the board. He then faced the minimum in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings to earn the win.Â
"That was an exciting moment to see Noah Farmer on a game mound for first time in a long time," SIU head coach Lance Rhodes said. "To go out there and pitch as well as he did, after all the hard work and rehab that he's done, was awesome to see."
Farmer's four-inning outing saved SIU's bullpen for tomorrow's 10 a.m. game against Alabama State. After SIU used three bullpen arms in yesterday's win over Jacksonville State, Harrison and Farmer were both outstanding today.Â
"Brad did what he usually does. He scattered hits and went deep into a ballgame. He's so experienced that he never lets any situation phase him. He continues to make pitches and gets us out of the inning," Rhodes said. "Noah had been built up as a starter and could have started this weekend. We thought he would be a valuable asset in the bullpen, and pitch-count wise, we knew he could go multiple innings. He has thrown it so well all preseason. There was some anxiousness because he has battled through so much, but he has thrown so well all preseason that it wasn't a surprise that he threw well today."
SIU got a run back on a wild pitch in the fifth inning. After Farmer got the Salukis out of the jam in the sixth, the Salukis took the momentum into the bottom half of the inning. Vinni Massaglia drew a leadoff walk but was still on first base with two outs. Grey Epps came through with a clutch pinch hit two-out RBI triple to tie the game, 3-3. Rask drove in the game-winning run with an RBI single.
SIU has one of the country's smallest roster with just 31 players, but the depth of those 31 was on display during the program's 2-0 start. Yesterday, Grey Epps and Austin Ulick started at second base and catcher, respectively, Epps drew two walks and scored a run. Ulick came through with a two-out, two-run double. Today, Cody Cleveland and Tony Rask started in those spots. Cleveland hit a double and scored, and Rask went 2-for-2 with a run scored, a sac bunt, and the clutch two-out go-ahead RBI single.Â
"The 8-9 spots in our lineup today were huge," Rhodes said. "Cody Cleveland had a big double. Grey (Epps) pinch hit for him because we had a good matchup, and he absolutely crushed a ball to tie the game. Tony (Rask) had a great day. He caught really well, blocked well, threw a runner out. His hits were two huge knocks."
The Salukis played error-free behind Harrison and Farmer. SIU, who has one of the most experienced infields in the country, was outstanding defensively, highlighted by Ian Walters' game-ending defensive play. In a one-run game in the ninth inning, Walters made a diving stop down the third-base line to take and made the throw all the way across the diamond to beat the runner. Instead of the potential tying run in scoring position in the ninth, Walters ended the game with the web gem and secured SIU's 2-0 start to the season. SIU's infield has not committed an error through two games and converted 22 ground ball outs.
UP NEXT: SIU closes out the weekend on Sunday at 10 a.m. against Alabama State. SIU is looking to start a season 3-0 for the first time since 2017 and for only the second time since 1979.
NOTES: Ian Walters' 16-game hitting streak, which dated back to last season, was snapped, but he reached base for the 24th-straight game, which dates back to late in the 2019 season ... SIU started the season 2-0 for the first time since 2017 and for only the second time since 2002 ... SIU has won seven-straight games, dating back to last season ... Eleven different Salukis already have at least one hit through two games ... Farmer and Harrison combined to throw 67% strikes (91 of 136) ... SIU and Tennessee Tech were originally scheduled to play a three-game series to start the season in Cookeville, Tenn. Weather forced the teams to move to a four-team round robin hosted by Jacksonville State ... Philip Archer has reached base in 13-straight games, dating back to last year.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Farmer, Noah (1-0)
L: FISHER, Ty (0-1)
Batting:
HR: LITTLEJOHN, Cody 1
RBI: GILLESPIE, Golston 1 ; LITTLEJOHN, Cody 2
Base Running:
RUNS: ROBERTS, Brett 1 ; JOHNS, Gavin 1 ; LITTLEJOHN, Cody 1
SB: ROBERTS, Brett 1
CS: BRYANT IV, Theo 1
Batting:
2B: Cleveland, Cody 1
3B: Epps, Grey 1
RBI: Walters, Ian 1 ; Epps, Grey 1 ; Rask, Tony 1
SH: Rask, Tony 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Massaglia, Vinni 1 ; Cleveland, Cody 1 ; Epps, Grey 1 ; Rask, Tony 1
SB: Neville, Nick 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
INF
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballOF
/ Baseball
C
/ Baseball
INF
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