Tuesday, April 18
Carbondale, IL
6 PM
Southern Illinois University
vs
Austin Peay
Photo by: Abby Harris
Salukis Look for Season Split with Austin Peay Tuesday at Home
04/17/2023 | 1:14:00 | Baseball
CARBONDALE, Ill. – Coming off a weekend series win over Evansville, the Southern Illinois baseball program sets its sights on a midweek rematch with Austin Peay Tuesday to wrap up a nine-game homestand. First pitch with the Governors is set for 6 p.m. from Itchy Jones Stadium.
HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG
Saluki Hall-of-Famer Mike Reis will have the call on SIUSalukis.com, the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store, as well as the Varsity Sports Network App. Live stats for the game are also available on SIUSalukis.com.
AROUND THE HORN
• Winners of 14 of its last 16 games, Southern Illinois will look for a season split with Austin Peay Tuesday.
• After taking two of three againast Evansville last weekend at home, SIU has won 12-straight MVC weekend series dating back to the 2021 season.
• SIU leads the country in double plays turned (42) and double plays turned per game (1.17).
• Southern is 3-1 in extra-inning games after walking off Belmont twice.
• SIU has four walk-off wins this season with the last coming in the series finale against Evansville.
• Three Salukis rank in the top-10 in the MVC in average (Bandy, Boucher, Christman).
• SIU leads the MVC in average (.286), hits (358), total bases (592), and is second in home runs (50).
• The Salukis have broken the single-season home run mark in the last two years (88-2022, 84-2021).
• Steven Loden leads SIU with 12 multi-RBI games. He has three four-RBI outings.
• Southern is 42-of-52 on stolen base attempts -- ranking third in the MVC. Southern has stolen 19 bases in the last 12 games, going 19-for-22. Illinois State leads the MVC with 44 stolen bases.
ON THE MOUND
Junior right-hander Jake Combs will make his ninth start of the season against the Governors. He enters the game 1-2 overall with a team-best ERA at 3.24. Combs holds one of the best strikeout-to-walk ratios on the team with 27 punchouts and just eight walks over 33.1 innings.
APSU will start freshman righty Ashton Smith who holds a 13.50 ERA and a 0-0 record. He has struck out 2 and walked one in limited action.
THE SERIES & MATCHUP
• The Salukis lead the all-time series with Austin Peay, 29-19. SIU is 18-7 against the Govs in Carbondale. The two teams split their midweek meetings in 2022 with each winning their home matchup. Earlier this season, APSU won 14-13 in Clarksville. Noah Cook hit what would have been a three-run game-tying home run in the top of the ninth but was called out for not touching home plate.
• Austin Peay enters Tuesday at 19-18 overall and is riding a four-game winning streak after defeating UT Martin and Queens in a three-game series in Clarksville. As a squad, APSU is hitting .308 with a .492 average and a .402 on-base percentage. The Govs have 42 home runs in 37 games. The team is led by Kyle Miller Green with a .386 average to go with 10 home runs and 32 RBIs. Garrett Martin is hitting .348 with a team-high 15 home runs and 42 RBIs. On the mound, the Govs hold a 6.70 combined ERA and have struck out 323 batters in 311.2 innings.
LAST TIME OUT
• SIU picked up its 12th-straight MVC weekend series after taking two of three against Evansville.
• The Salukis dropped the series opener 10-2 before taking the next two games, including a walk-off win Sunday afternoon.
• Nathan Bandy singled to right to score the winning run in the finale -- one of just three hits for the outfielder in the series.
• SIU was a perfect 5-for-5 on stolen base attempts against the Aces with Nathan Bandy going 2-for-2 on steal attempts in the series.
• Kaeber Rog led all Salukis in the series with a .444 average, going 4-for-9 against the Aces, scoring three runs. He also led the team with a .545 on-base percentage.
UP NEXT
The Salukis travel to league-leader Indiana State this weekend for a three-game set. The Salukis sit in second place in the MVC at 10-2 while the Sycamores are 11-1.
FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on Twitter at @SIU_Baseball, on Facebook at Facebook.com/SalukiBaseball, and on Instagram at @SIU_Baseball. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.
HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG
Saluki Hall-of-Famer Mike Reis will have the call on SIUSalukis.com, the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store, as well as the Varsity Sports Network App. Live stats for the game are also available on SIUSalukis.com.
AROUND THE HORN
• Winners of 14 of its last 16 games, Southern Illinois will look for a season split with Austin Peay Tuesday.
• After taking two of three againast Evansville last weekend at home, SIU has won 12-straight MVC weekend series dating back to the 2021 season.
• SIU leads the country in double plays turned (42) and double plays turned per game (1.17).
• Southern is 3-1 in extra-inning games after walking off Belmont twice.
• SIU has four walk-off wins this season with the last coming in the series finale against Evansville.
• Three Salukis rank in the top-10 in the MVC in average (Bandy, Boucher, Christman).
• SIU leads the MVC in average (.286), hits (358), total bases (592), and is second in home runs (50).
• The Salukis have broken the single-season home run mark in the last two years (88-2022, 84-2021).
• Steven Loden leads SIU with 12 multi-RBI games. He has three four-RBI outings.
• Southern is 42-of-52 on stolen base attempts -- ranking third in the MVC. Southern has stolen 19 bases in the last 12 games, going 19-for-22. Illinois State leads the MVC with 44 stolen bases.
ON THE MOUND
Junior right-hander Jake Combs will make his ninth start of the season against the Governors. He enters the game 1-2 overall with a team-best ERA at 3.24. Combs holds one of the best strikeout-to-walk ratios on the team with 27 punchouts and just eight walks over 33.1 innings.
APSU will start freshman righty Ashton Smith who holds a 13.50 ERA and a 0-0 record. He has struck out 2 and walked one in limited action.
THE SERIES & MATCHUP
• The Salukis lead the all-time series with Austin Peay, 29-19. SIU is 18-7 against the Govs in Carbondale. The two teams split their midweek meetings in 2022 with each winning their home matchup. Earlier this season, APSU won 14-13 in Clarksville. Noah Cook hit what would have been a three-run game-tying home run in the top of the ninth but was called out for not touching home plate.
• Austin Peay enters Tuesday at 19-18 overall and is riding a four-game winning streak after defeating UT Martin and Queens in a three-game series in Clarksville. As a squad, APSU is hitting .308 with a .492 average and a .402 on-base percentage. The Govs have 42 home runs in 37 games. The team is led by Kyle Miller Green with a .386 average to go with 10 home runs and 32 RBIs. Garrett Martin is hitting .348 with a team-high 15 home runs and 42 RBIs. On the mound, the Govs hold a 6.70 combined ERA and have struck out 323 batters in 311.2 innings.
LAST TIME OUT
• SIU picked up its 12th-straight MVC weekend series after taking two of three against Evansville.
• The Salukis dropped the series opener 10-2 before taking the next two games, including a walk-off win Sunday afternoon.
• Nathan Bandy singled to right to score the winning run in the finale -- one of just three hits for the outfielder in the series.
• SIU was a perfect 5-for-5 on stolen base attempts against the Aces with Nathan Bandy going 2-for-2 on steal attempts in the series.
• Kaeber Rog led all Salukis in the series with a .444 average, going 4-for-9 against the Aces, scoring three runs. He also led the team with a .545 on-base percentage.
UP NEXT
The Salukis travel to league-leader Indiana State this weekend for a three-game set. The Salukis sit in second place in the MVC at 10-2 while the Sycamores are 11-1.
FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on Twitter at @SIU_Baseball, on Facebook at Facebook.com/SalukiBaseball, and on Instagram at @SIU_Baseball. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.
Players Mentioned
OF
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RHP
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INF
/ Baseball
INF
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