Southern Illinois University
Drake
Salukis open MVC Tournament play on Thursday
05/12/2021 | 3:22:00 | Softball
Southern will open against the winner of Thursday's Loyola vs. Drake matchup.
EVANSVILLE, Ind. — The Southern Illinois University softball team opens Missouri Valley Conference Tournament play on Thursday, May 13 at 4 p.m. The Salukis will wait for the conclusion of Thursday morning's contest between Loyola and Drake to know their opponent.
All-time at the MVC Tournament
• The Salukis are 49-52 all-time at the MVC Tournament
• SIU last won the MVC Tournament in 2017, which marked their first conference tournament title since 1991.
• Southern played in the MVC Tournament semifinals in 2019, where they fell to UNI, 2-0.
• The Salukis have advanced to the MVC Tournament Championship game six times, most recently in 2018. Southern also made it to the championship game in 2017, 2012, 2010, 2007, 2004. SIU also advanced to the Gateway Championship game in 1991 and 1992.
All-Time as the fourth seed
• This marks the fifth time that SIU has been the fourth seed and the first time since 2016.
• Southern has won at least one game in each of its four previous stints at the No. 4 seed and holds a 7-6 all-time record as the fourth seed.
• In 2012, Southern defeated Creighton, 3-2 and followed with a 1-0 win over UNI to advance to the Championship game. Illinois State, however, ended SIU's season that year in the championship game with a 13-3 win.
• In SIU's most recent appearance as the No. 4 seed in 2016, Southern defeated Missouri State, 4-3 to advance to the MVC Tournament semifinals where they fell to No. 1 seeded Wichita State Shockers, 7-5.
All-Conference honors
• Southern tallied five all-conference honors and an all-defensive team selection.
• Maddy Vermejan earned a spot on the All-MVC First Team while Katelyn Massa, Maris Boelens, Bailey Caylor and Sarah Harness all were selected to the Second Team.
• Massa, meanwhile, was named to the MVC All-Defensive Team for the second time in her career.
• The Salukis have had at least five earn all-conference honors in five-straight seasons.
RPI Report
•Southern is one of three MVC teams with a top-60 RPI. Illinois State (52), UNI (55) and SIU (57) are all in the top-60.
30-win season
• The Salukis won their 30th game of the season with a 4-1 win over Indiana State on April 24 and have now won 30-plus games in 18 of Kerri Blaylock's 21 full seasons as head coach- the most 30-plus win seasons in the MVC during that time period.
• Since 1983, SIU has tallied 26 30-plus win seasons- which is also the most in the Valley.
• With a win at the MVC Tournament, Southern will have its most wins in a season since 2012, when the Salukis went 36-20.
Pitching on Point
• SIU held its opponent to four runs or fewer in four MVC series this season, which included two in which it held its opponent to just one run.
• It marks just the second time since 2000 (when MVC went to three-game series) and first time since 2005 that SIU has swept multiple series in which they've allowed one run or fewer in a three-game sweep.
• Southern held Bradley (4), Loyola (1), Indiana State (4) and Valpo (1) to four runs or fewer.
Making History
• Maddy Vermejan further cemented her name in Saluki softball lore as she set several all-time career and single-season records and approaches several other milestones.
• Became SIU's all-time leader in games played (227). She passed Marta Viefhaus, who played in 223 games from 1998-2001.
• Passed Katie Jordan for the most games started (224) in program history.
• Broke Mallory Duran-Sellers (2009-12) school record for career runs scored. Her 166 careers are the second-most in MVC history (24 shy of Kara Nelson's all-time conference record).
• Broke Cheryl Venorsky and Jami Koss' single-season stolen bases record with her 26th steal, breaking a record that had stood for 25 years.
• Three hits shy of passing Cheryl Venorsky (1989-92) for 10th on Southern's all-time hits list.
• Three RBIs from becoming the 18th player in program history with 100-plus runs driven in.
• Two hit by pitches shy of breaking Allie Vadeboncouer's single-season record of 28, set in 2012.
• Seven steals away from breaking Marta Viefhaus and Jami Koss' school career record of 63.
Defending our house
• SIU improved to 19-4 at Charlotte West Stadium this season with its sweep of Valpo.
• Southern's 19 home wins this season are its most since 2006 while its .826 winning percentage at home this season is also its best since 2006
• The Salukis are 28-4 at home over the last two seasons.
Have a Day
• Elisabeth Huckleberry went 2-for-2 with two home runs and a career-high five RBIs in SIU's 8-0 run-rule win over Valpo on May 2.
• Her two home runs tied the school record (43rd Saluki to hit two) for most home runs in a single game and she became just the 10th Saluki freshman to hit two homers in a game.
• Southern improved to 42-0 in games where at least one player hits two home runs
Hitting bombs
• Katelyn Massa moved into fifth on SIU's all-time home run list with her 31st career home run- a solo shot in SIU's 11-1 win over Indiana State on April 25.
• Massa is just the 23rd player in Missouri Valley Conference history to hit 30-plus round trippers in a career.
• Jenny Jansen has six home runs this season and 23 for her career- the eighth-most in program history while Vermejan's three-run home run against Indiana State on April 25 moved her into a tie for 23rd on SIU's all-time list with 15.
Historic Run Producers
• Katelyn Massa's 144 career RBIs are the third-most in program history and are 12 shy of breaking Shaye Harre's 2017 career RBI record of 155.
• Massa's 144 RBIs are tied for the ninth-most in Missouri Valley Conference history. She needs seven RBIs to crack the top-5 in conference history.
• Jenny Jansen is tied for seventh in school history and tied for 16th in MVC history, with 129 career RBIs. She's three shy of cracking the Top-15 in conference history.
Picking up Weekly honors
• Sarah Harness has earned five MVC Pitcher of the Week honors this season, which are the most in a single-season by a Saluki pitcher since Amy Harre racked up five in 2002.
• The sophomore hurler, who was named one of 30 finalists for the NFCA DI National Freshman of the Year award last week, allowed just seven hits in those 12 innings- all of which were singles- to go along with 10 strikeouts and two walks.
Weekly Honors
Feb. 22 - Maddy Vermejan, Player of the Week
March 1 - Sarah Harness, MVC Pitcher of the Week
March 9 - Sarah Harness, MVC Pitcher of the Week
March 22 - Elizabeth Warwick, MVC Newcomer of the Week
April 5 - Sarah Harness, MVC Pitcher of the Week
April 12 - Sarah Harness, MVC Pitcher of the Week
April 12 - Bailey Caylor, MVC Newcomer of the Week
May 3 - Sarah Harness, MVC Pitcher of the Week
50 Runs Club
• Maddy Vermejan's 50 runs scored this season are tied for the third-most in a single-season in program history and are a career-high for a single-season for Vermejan.
• The school record for runs scored in a single-season is 61, set by Mallory Duran-Sellers in 2012.
• Vermejan ranks 31st nationally with a 1.06 runs scored per game average.
Full game notes are available here.
