Softball to host Saluki Invitational

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- The Southern Illinois University softball team puts its 18-game win streak on the line this weekend when it hosts the Saluki Invitational at Charlotte West Stadium beginning Friday, March 5. Joining SIU for the three-day, five-team event will be St. Louis, University of Illinois-Chicago, Northern Kentucky and Creighton. Only those fans on the player pass list will be allowed in Charlotte West Stadium. A full schedule of this weekend's tournament is available here.

Saluki Invitational History

• The Saluki Invitational tournament dates back to 1981.
• SIU holds a 59-31 all-time record at the Saluki Invitational, which includes last season's 5-0 performance.

18-straight wins

Southern has won 18-straight games dating back to last season. SIU won its final nine games in 2020 before the season was brought to a halt.
It's the second-longest win streak in school history and is the longest for the Salukis since 1991.
It is the longest win streak in Kerri Blaylock's 22 seasons as SIU's head coach.
Southern's program record 23-game win streak streak was set during the 1991 season.

Third Longest win streak in the nation

Southern's 18-game win streak is the third-longest active win streak in the nation.
Only No. 2 Arizona (21 games) and No. 5 Florida (19 games) have win streaks that are greater than Southern's. No. 1 Oklahoma currently is tied with SIU with an 18-game win streak.
The Salukis are one of eight teams with a double-digit win streak and are the only one of the eight not ranked in the Top-20.

Third-best start in program history

SIU's 9-0 start is the third-best start to a season in program history and is its best start to a season since 2009.
The 2009 squad went 11-0 and finished the regular season 33-13.
The 1991 team owns the best start to a season in program history. They won their first 12 games en route to going 42-7. The 1991 Salukis went on to win the Gateway Conference Tournament Championship to secure a spot in a NCAA Regional.

Streaking at Charlotte West Stadium

Southern has won 15-straight home games dating back to the 2019 season. SIU's last loss at home came on May 4, 2019.
SIU's 15-game home win streak is tied for the fifth-longest in the nation. Drake's 28-game home win streak is the longest.

Receiving Votes

Not surprisingly, Southern received even more votes in the most recent NFCA Top-25 coaches poll.
The Salukis received two votes two weeks ago and after going 3-0 at the Coach B Classic, received 11 total votes.
Southern's 11 votes puts it 30th in the most recent NFCA Coaches Poll and is more than Stanford, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Notre Dame, to name a few.

Undefeated Still

Southern is one of just 14 teams to remain undefeated.
Of those 14 teams, SIU is one of just six with at least nine wins.
The Salukis' nine wins are tied for the 19th-most in DI.

Turning Two

The Salukis have turned eight double plays in nine games (.89/game) this season.
Southern ranks fourth nationally in double plays per game.
SIU turned six double plays in 21 games (.29) in 2020 and turned 12 in 49 games (.24) in 2019.

Swiping Freebies

• Southern comes into the weekend ranked second in the Valley, and 19th nationally, with a 2.11 stolen bases per game average.
• SIU is 19-for-24 in stolen base attempts this season and 10 different Salukis have already stolen a base.
• Southern's 2.11 steals per game are a significant increase from its 1.47/game average from a year ago.
• SIU's 1.47 steals per game average last season was the highest since at least 1987. The 1991 team holds the highest stolen bases per game average for a full season at 1.44.

2020 - 1.47 sb/game
1991 - 1.44
1992 - 1.37
2010 - 1.34

Leading the Way

Maddy Vermejan leads the Valley, and ranks 12th nationally with a .667 on-base percentage.
Vermejan has reached base in eight of SIU's nine games this season. She's walked in eight of Southern's nine games and tallied at least one hit in seven games this season.
Vermejan's .467 career on-base percentage ranks second to Shaye Harre (.476) and is the highest for a right-handed hitter in program history.
Vermejan's 1.11 walks per game lead the Valley and rank 10th nationally.

Taking one for the team

Maddy Vermejan has been hit by 61 pitches in her career- which are the third-most among active DI players.
Vermejan's 61 hit by pitches rank second to Allie Vadeboncouer for most in school history. Vadeboncouer was plunked 71 times during her career.

On historic pace

In 2019, Jenny Jansen became the first Saluki to hit over .400 in a season since 1996.
Jansen's .346 career batting average currently ranks her fourth in school history (mini. 200 at-bats).
Jansen also currently ranks fourth all-time in slugging percentage (.558), tied for eighth in doubles (35), 11th in on-base percentage (.406) and is three RBI shy of becoming the 17th player in school history with at least 100 RBI.

Harness named MVC Pitcher of the Week

Sarah Harness was named the Missouri Valley Conference Pitcher of the Week last week after she went 2-0 with a microscopic 0.64 earned run average in three appearances to help Southern keep its 18-game win streak alive.
The sophomore hurler threw 11.0 innings and allowed just one earned run on five hits- of which just one went for extra bases. The Bowling Green, Mo., native struck out 12, walked just one and limited opponents to a .147 batting average.
The MVC Pitcher of the Week honor is the third for Harness in her career.
Harness became one of just 21 pitchers in program history to strike out 100-plus batters in a career with her 12 strikeouts over the weekend.

Scouting the Billikens (0-3)

St. Louis are off to an 0-3 start and have been outscored, 21-10 in its three games this season.
The Billikens went 8-13 in 2020.
St. Louis was picked to finish fifth in the A-10 on the strength of having eight starters and three pitchers back from its 2020 team.

All-time vs. St. Louis

SIU holds a 48-4 all-time record against the Billikens.
Southern has won four-straight in the series, which includes a pair of shutout wins over the Billikens in 2019. SIU outscored SLU, 16-0 in the two wins.
The Billikens last win in the series came during the 2015 season.

Scouting Creighton (0-3)

• The Blue Jays sport an 0-3 record and were outscored, 31-5, in its three-game series with Wichita State to open the season.
• Creighton went 13-12 in 2020 and were picked to finish fifth in the annual Big East Conference preseason poll.

All-Time vs. Creighton

• The Salukis are 25-32 all-time vs. the Bluejays, who left the Missouri Valley Conference in 2013 after 36 years of being a member school.
• Southern is 20-28 all-time against Creighton under head coach Kerri Blaylock.
• The Salukis have won seven of the last 10 meetings in the series, which includes a 4-3 win a year ago at the Coach B Classic.

Scouting the Flames (2-3)

The Flames are off to a 2-3 start after it posted wins over Winthrop and Mount St. Marys at the Winthrop Classic.
UIC went 9-11 a year ago with three of its losses coming against ranked opponents.
The Flames were picked to finish first in the 2021 Horizon League preseason poll.
UIC's 2021 squad features 13 returners, including 2019 Horizon League Player of the Year shortstop Kayla Wedl.
The Flames advanced to NCAA Regionals in both 2017 and 2018 but fell twice to Detroit Mercy in the 2019 Horizon League Championship game. The Salukis went on to defeat the Titans, 2-1, on a Maris Boelens' walk-off single at the 2019 NCAA Regional.

All-time vs. UIC

The Salukis lead the all-time series against the Flames, 10-3 in a matchup that dates back to 1976.
SIU won the first five meetings between the two squads from 1976-83 before UIC won the next two meetings in 1995.
Southern is 4-2 against UIC under head coach Kerri Blaylock. The Salukis won the most recent meeting between the ball clubs, a 5-0 win on March 13, 2011.
The two teams were slated to play at the 2019 Saluki Invitational but were rained out.

Scouting the Norse (0-4)

Northern Kentucky went 0-4 on its opening weekend with losses to No. 23 Tennessee, UT Martin, Illinois State and Central Michigan.
The Norse were picked to finish third in the Horizon League preseason poll.
NKU went 9-10 in 2020 and went 22-33 with a 12-11 record in league play, good for a fourth-place league finish, in 2019.

All-time vs. Northern Kentucky University

The Salukis defeated the Norse, 5-0 at last season's Coach B Classic in what was the the first-ever meeting between the programs.
NKU reclassified to NCAA DI in 2013.

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Maris Boelens

Sarah Harness

Jenny Jansen

Maddy Vermejan

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