Preview | Salukis Host Belmont for Senior Weekend as Top-Two Valley Teams Clash

Carbondale, Ill. - Southern Illinois gets ready for its final home Valley series this weekend as Belmont makes the trip to Carbondale. The Salukis (30-8, 14-3 MVC) are currently atop the MVC standings with the Bruins (27-12, 13-5 MVC) just behind them in second place with 10 regular season games remaining for SIU.

THE SCHEDULE
Friday – 5 p.m.
Saturday (SENIOR DAY) – 2 p.m.
Sunday – 12 p.m.

HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG
All three games will be streamed on ESPN Plus. Fans can also follow along via live stats or via @SIU_Softball.

QUICK HITS

The Salukis currently hold a game and a half lead heading into the weekend after Belmont split its midweek doubleheader with Murray State on Tuesday.
Both teams rank in the top three in the MVC in batting average, ERA, and fielding percentage.
The Bruins lead the conference with a .288 batting average while the Salukis lead it with a 1.74 ERA and .963 fielding percentage.
Saluki freshman Maddia Groff leads the MVC with the seventh-best ERA in the nation (0.73) while Belmont redshirt sophomore Maya Johnson is second in the Valley with a 1.56 mark. Johnson also has the second-most strikeouts (155) behind Groff's 161.
The Salukis have won four in a row heading into the weekend after a dominating sweep over Evansville and a road win at Illinois last Wednesday.
Belmont has won five-straight Valley series coming into the weekend after taking two of three last weekend against Missouri State and a 1-1 doubleheader split on Wednesday at Murray State.

THE MATCHUP: SALUKIS VS BRUINS

The Salukis and Bruins have faced off just five times before with Belmont owning a 2-3 series lead.
SIU currently holds a 2-game lead over Belmont in the Valley standings.
Both teams have gone 7-3 in their last 10 games played.
Four of the five games were played in 2023, splitting the series at 2-2.
Belmont won the regular season series 2-1 but SIU came back to defeat the Bruins in the MVC Semifinal 4-3 to advance to the championship.
Elizabeth Warwick walked off the Bruins in the MVC Semifinal a season ago as she led off the bottom of the seventh after Belmont had just tied the game with a run in the top half of the inning.

IN THE CIRCLE

SIU currently leads the MVC and ranks second in the nation with 1.74 team ERA.
Maddia Groff ranks second in the nation in ERA (0.73) and wins (21) in her freshman season and leads the Valley in ERA, wins, opponent batting average, and strikeouts.
In 17 conference games so far the Salukis hoist a 1.32 ERA and 0.94 WHIP with all three qualified Saluki pitchers with an ERA under 3.00 in Valley action.
The Salukis have only given up more than three runs in one MVC game, in a 6-4 win at UIC.

TOP DAWGS

Emma Austin leads the MVC with 19 stolen bases on 20 attempts.
Three of the seven 1.000 fielding percentage in the Valley are owned by a Saluki - Emma Austin, Sidney Jones, and Rylinn Groff.
Elizabeth Warwick leads the league with 15 doubles as she's just three shy of breaking the program record for career doubles as she currently sits with 47.
Sidney Jones leads the Salukis in batting average (.356) and RBIs (29) as she ranks in the top-10 in the Valley in both categories.

FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on Twitter at @SIU_Softball, on Facebook at Facebook.com/SalukiSoftball, and on Instagram at @SIU_Softball. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.

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