Preview | Salukis Host Murray State for Alumni Weekend - Southern Illinois University Athletics

Photo by: Abby Harris

Preview | Salukis Host Murray State for Alumni Weekend

04/11/2024 | 2:30:00 | Baseball

By: Tim McCaughan, SIUSalukis.com

CARBONDALE, Ill. – Southern Illinois baseball will welcome former players and staff back to Itchy Jones Stadium this weekend for Alumni Weekend as the Salukis play host to Murray State for a three-game series.

THE SCHEDULE
Friday – 6 p.m.
Saturday – 2 p.m. (Pregame recognition of alumni)
Sunday – 1 p.m.

WHAT'S HAPPENING

It's Alumni Weekend all weekend with a special recognition before Saturday's game.
Saluki Athletics will honor the life and legacy of Hall of Famer Tim Kratochvil pregame on Saturday.
To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of SIU's 1974 College World Series team, SIU will recognize members of the team on Saturday.
Sunday – "Kids Run The Bases" after the game.

HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG
Luke Martin will have the radio call on The Varsity Network all weekend long. Fans can also follow along via live stats or at @SIU_Baseball.

WEEKEND ROTATION
RHP Mike Hansell (3-2, 5.77) vs RHP Cade Vernon (4-2, 4.75)
LHP Al Holguin (2-2, 3.89) vs RHP Jacob Pennington (3-0, 3.49)
RHP Aidan Foeller (2-1, 5.55) vs LHP Ethan Lyke (2-1, 5.87)

QUICK HITS

Entering the weekend at 19-14 overall and 4-5 in the Missouri Valley Conference, SIU looks to snap a four-game losing skid after dropping a weekend series at UIC and a midweek game against SEMO.
The Salukis are 12-5 in home games this season and 13-10 on the weekend.
SIU is 14-1 when leading after eight, 14-2 when leading after seven, and 12-2 when leading after six innings.
The Salukis are 11-1 when scoring in the first inning and 12-7 when scoring first.
Six Salukis have multi-hit games in 10 or more games this season led by Mathieu Vallee with 13 multi-hit games, including a four-hit game.
Nathan Bandy's 17-game hitting streak came to an end against SEMO Tuesday. Jordan Bach leads the team now with hits in three games. Bach also holds a 15-game reached base streak to lead the squad.
Southern is 12-2 in games in which the team does not commit an error and 8-4 when committing one error.
SIU ranks second in the MVC in strikeouts per nine innings (9.0) and third in strikeout-to-walk ratio (1.94).
Aidan Foeller leads the MVC and ranks 12th nationally with 14.38 strikeouts per nine innings. He set a career-high in punchouts last time out with 12 against UIC.
SIU has played in six extra-inning games this season and is 1-5. Just one game has gone past the 10th inning which was against SEMO (11). SIU's last win in extras came against Jacksonville State in a 7-6 win at home.

THE SERIES & MATCHUP

Murray State enters play with a 20-12 overall record and a 4-5 mark in Missouri Valley Conference action.
The Racers were picked to finish fourth in the MVC Preseason Poll.
MSU coming off a weekend series loss to Indiana State, dropping two of three games.
Southern holds a 53-26 advantage in the series, including a 30-9 record at Itchy Jones Stadium.
Last season, the Racers took the series in Murray after winning two of the three games.
As a team, MSU is hitting .289 with a .489 slugging percentage and a .388 on-base percentage. The team is led by Carson Garner who is slashing .351/.712/.503 with 12 home runs and 35 runs batted in.
Dan Tauken is hitting .318 with nine home runs and 30 RBI while Drew Vogel is at .317 with seven homers and 31 RBI. Murray has hit 51 home runs while opponents have combined for 36.
On the mound, the Racers hold a 5.42 combined team ERA with 272 strikeouts and 111 walks in 280.2 innings.

SWINGING THE HOT BAT

SIU has an MVC-best 331 hits and ranks second with 69 doubles.
Five Salukis are hitting .300 or better led by Nathan Bandy with a .354 average in 27 games and 19 starts.
Steven Loden leads the Salukis and ranks third in the MVC with 36 runs batted in.

SCORE, SCORE, SCORE

The Salukis lead the Missouri Valley Conference in runs (260) and rank second in scoring per game (7.9). Southern has scored 10 or more runs in 12 games this season, scoring 13 or more in seven games.
With 38 runs scored this season, Jake Allgeyer is second in the MVC and ranks 58th nationally.

RUN WITH US

SIU is 58-66 on stolen bases this season, including 1.76 steals per game to rank first in the MVC.
Nine players have multiple stolen bases led by Mathieu Vallee who is 12-for-13. Jake Allgeyer is 11-for-11 on steals while Hesston Gray is 7-of-8.

WALK IT OUT

The Salukis have shown patience at the plate, ranking tops in the MVC and 12th nationally after drawing 201 walks in 33 games (6.09 walks per game).
SIU has nine players that have earned 10 or more walks led by Jake Allgeyer's 30 free passes.
The Salukis have a .401 on-base percentage which is third in the MVC and 76th nationally.

DOUBLE TROUBLE

The Salukis lead the MVC and rank 44th nationally in double plays with 26 turned this season and 0.79 double plays turned per game.
SIU has led the MVC in turning double plays in seven of the last 10 seasons. SIU led the MVC in double plays in 2013, 14, 15, 17, 18, 20, and 2023. The Salukis were second in the MVC in 2016.

FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on X 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.