Salukis open homestand with three-game series against Sycamores

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- The Southern Illinois University softball team kicks off its four-game homestand this weekend with a three-game series against the Indiana State Sycamores. Southern, who rallied from down 6-0 to tie Murray State in eight innings earlier this week, has won five of its last six over Indiana State dating back to the 2019 season. Saturday's doubleheader gets underway at Noon while Sunday's series finale will also get underway at Noon.

GAME NOTES

All-Time vs. Indiana State

The Salukis lead the all-time series over the Sycamores, 78-29 in a series that dates back to 1976.
Southern has won five of the last six meetings against the Trees, which included a sweep of the season series in Terre Haute in 2019.
The Salukis took two out of three from the Sycamores a year ago.
Indiana State took two of three from the Salukis the last time that the two teams met in Carbondale in 2018.

Battled to a Tie

Southern rallied from a 6-0 deficit over the final four innings of play to tie the Murray State Racers, 6-6 in a game that was called after eight innings due to rain.
It marked the fifth time in program history and the first since 2015 that the Salukis have settled for a tie. In 2015, Southern and Northern Colorado battled to a 10-10 tie in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico in a game that was called due to darkness.
Southern's tie against Murray State was also the first for a MVC school since SIU and Northern Colorado battled to a tie in 2015.

Ties in school history
vs. Minnesota (4/19/80) - T, 5-5
vs. Drake (4/3/92) - T, 5-5
at SEMO (3/24/98) - T, 3-3
vs. Northern Colorado (2/26/15) - T, 10-10

Ties in 2022 NCAA Division 1 softball this season:

Minnesota vs. Texas (3/13/22): T, 10-10
Tulsa vs. Houston (3/25/22) : T, 2-2
Princeton vs. Lehigh (4/13/22): T, 3-3
SIU vs. Murray State (4/20/22): T, 6-6

Walk this way

SIU leads the Valley, and ranks ninth nationally, with 168 total walks.
Nine Salukis have already drawn double-digit free passes this season, led by Jenny Jansen's conference-leading 28 walks.
Ashley Wood ranks second with 26 walks and Southern has a total of three ranked in the top-10 of the conference in walks drawn per game: Jansen (1st; .79), Wood (2nd; .73) and Bailey Caylor (8th; .56).
Southern has led the league in walks in seven of interim head coach Jen Sewell's 13 full seasons on staff and SIU has finished top-4 in the category 10 times during that time period.

Still doing new things

Jenny Jansen has reached base in 27-straight games, which is the longest streak of her career.
Jansen's 27-game reached base streak is the second-longest streak by a Saluki since at least 2003. Allie Vadeboncouer's 28-game streak during the 2014 season is the only streak longer than Jansen's current streak.
The Warrenton, Mo. native, who had a 22-game reached base streak during the 2021 season, joins Alicia Garza and Mallory Duran-Sellers as the only Salukis with multiple 20-game reached base steaks since 2003.
Jansen currently leads the MVC in on-base percentage (.497) and walks (28). She also ranks in the top-10 in RBI (2nd; 33), batting average (6th; .375), OPS (7th; 1.047), hits (4th; 45) and home runs (8th; 6).

Our workhorse

Sarah Harness currently leads the MVC, and ranks 17th nationally, in innings pitched (150.2). She is also third strikeouts (130) and fourth in wins (13).
Last season, Harness led the Valley in innings pitched (187.1) and finished second in both wins (22) and strikeouts (203).
Harness led the league in innings pitched and finished second in strikeouts in each of her two previous seasons, which included the COVID-shortened 2020 season in which she led the Valley with 90.2 innings pitched and was second to Evansville's Izzy Vetter with 83 strikeouts.
Harness became the 10th pitcher in program history to reach the 400 career innings pitched milestone in the win over Valparaiso on April 11.
Harness struck out a career-high 15 batters in SIU's win over Eastern Kentucky on Feb. 25, 2022. It was the most strikeouts in a game by a Saluki since Bri Jones struck out 20 in a 16 inning win over Evansville on April 28, 2018.

Woody's big day

Ashley Wood went 3-for-4 with a double and two home runs in SIU's 12-2 win over Valparaiso on April 11.
The Orland Park, Ill. native became the second Saluki this season to tie the school record for home runs in a game. Elizabeth Warwick also accomplished the feat on March 26 against Loyola.
It marked the 45th time that a Saluki has hit two home runs in a game and Southern improved to 44-0 in games in which at least one player hits two home runs.
Wood, who also hit two home runs against St. Louis as a freshman on March 2, 2019, became just the 12th player in program history to homer twice in multiple games during their career.
The 2019 MVC Freshman of the Year has tied her career-high for hits in a game (3) twice in her last four games. She went 3-for-4 against Bradley on April 16.
Wood ranks in the top-10 of the Valley in nearly every meaningful offensive category: batting average (10th; .350), on-base percentage (2nd; .490), OPS (8th; 1.023), runs scored (6th; 29), hits (8th; 42), doubles (5th; 10), walks (2nd; 26) and hit by pitches (T3rd; 8).

On a roll

Elizabeth Warwick has been on a roll as of late.
Warwick has at least two hits in five of her last seven games, which includes all of SIU's three wins at Valparaiso. She tied her career-high with three hits in SIU's 12-2 win on April 11.
The Chattanooga, Tenn. native ranks in the top-10 of the Valley in on-base percentage (10th; .421), RBI (3rd; 30) and doubles (T-5th; 10).
Warwick has also tied a pair of single game school records this season: most walks in a game with four against Drake on April 3 and most home runs in a game with two against Loyola on March 26.

All out for her senior year

Sidney Sikes is leaving everything out on the field in her senior season as a Saluki.
Sikes' has 25 RBI in 37 games this season, which is six more than she had in her previous 107 career games coming into the 2022 season.
She also has more extra base hits this season (7) than she had in her first three seasons combined (5) and has more hits in 37 games this season (22) as she had in 51 games (21) in 2021.
She comes into the weekend riding a 17-game reached base streak, which is the longest of her career.
Sikes has reached base safely in 32 of the 37 games she has played in this season.
She has been hit by a pitch in 17 games this season, which included three times in SIU's series sweep of Loyola.
The senior from Kaufman, Texas currently leads the Valley, and the nation, in hit by pitches per game (.53/game).
Sikes' 44 career hit by pitches are the third-most in school history.

Dont run on Sid

Sidney Sikes has thrown out 12 would-be base stealers this season, which is the most in the MVC.
Not only is it the most in the Valley this season, it ranks her 15th nationally in the category.
Southern has allowed just 18 stolen bases this season, which is tied with Loyola for the fewest in the Valley.

Rylie Rakes

Rylie Hamilton currently ranks second in the Valley in hits (47) and is seventh in batting average (.370).
In four of the last six seasons, the player to lead the Valley in batting average also led the league in hits. Macy Johnson (Drake) was the most recent to accomplish the feat in 2021.
Dawn Daenzer was the last Saluki to lead the Valley in batting average when she hit .432 during the 1995 season. Morgan Barchan, meanwhile, is the only Saluki to lead the MVC in hits when she tied for the lead league with 62 base knocks during the 2013 season.
Hamilton has a proven knack for hitting in bunches, as she has a team-high 17 multi-hit games.

Walk it out

Southern has drawn double-digit walks in four games this season.
SIU drew a season-high 13 walks in its win over Drake on April 2. Eight days later in a 10-4 win over Valparaiso, Southern again drew 13 free passes.
Southern's 13 walks in a single game are the most in a game in the MVC this season and are tied for the 11th-most in a NCAA DI game this season.
Not only was it a season-high it was the most walks drawn by the Salukis since at least 2003.
SIU's 13 walks are the most by a Valley school since Missouri State drew 14 against Evansville on April 19, 2019.
Southern is the only program nationally to post three games with 11 or more walks.

Top of the Class
Southern currently leads the Valley in a slew of statistical categories including:
Batting average (.292)
Double plays per game (.43)
On-Base percentage (.406)
Scoring (6.08)
Walks (168)

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