Recap | Salukis Rally to Take Home Opener Over Southern Indiana, 16-12

CARBONDALE, Ill. – Southern Illinois baseball did not score a run until the sixth inning, but two big innings pushed the Salukis over Southern Indiana, 16-12, Friday afternoon at Itchy Jones Stadium.

It wasn't until the fifth inning until Southern Illinois (5-3) recorded a base hit as USI starting pitcher Andres Gonzalez was strong on the mound in his start. The right-hander was able to keep the bases clean apart from a first-inning error and a pair of third inning walks.

The Screaming Eagles would give their pitcher support on the scoreboard with one run in the fourth before putting up a five-spot in the top of the sixth to take a 6-0 lead.

That was when the Salukis offense responded by batting around the order with five runs on four hits in the bottom of the sixth to pull within a run. Leadoff man Jordan Bach kickstarted the rally with a double to open the inning before Michael Mylott homered for the first time this season to put the Salukis on the board.

Back-to-back walks and a wild pitch put the Salukis in scoring position once again before Mason Schwalbach grounded out to make it a 6-3 game. Gabe Petrucelli would then collect SIU's fifth triple of the season on a ball down the line in left to score the fourth run. Designated hitter John Lemm later scored Petrucelli from third with an infield hit to cap off the inning.

After USI (6-3) answered with two runs in the seventh, SIU would get a run back and make it an 8-6 game when Mylott was able to come home on a throwing error.

SIU would take the lead and break the game open in the eighth inning as the Dawgs scored 10 runs on four hits, while drawing four walks in the frame. Two walks and a hit-by-pitch would load the bases for the Salukis before Mylott earned an RBI on a hit-by-pitch to make it a one-run game.

Senior infielder Cecil Lofton would push across the tying and go-ahead runs with a single through the hole between first and second. Matt Schark answered the call with an RBI double down the line before USI would walk two more batters to score another SIU run.

Kaleb Hall, John Lemm, and Jaxon Holder each tallied one-out base hits to score four more runs for the Dawgs and those insurance runs would be important in the ninth as Southern Indiana put up four runs on two hits, three-hit-by-pitches and an error.

SIU would go to the bullpen for Sam Frizzi who would come in to close the door and earn the save.

Mylott and Holder led the Salukis with three RBIs each. Holder reached base three times in the game with a single and two walks while Mylott scored three times in the win.

Jordan Huskey pitched five innings in his start for the Salukis. The lefty struck out four and allowed three hits. Dylan Petrey earned the win out of the bullpen to move to 1-0.

Clayton Slack led USI with a 3-for-4 day at the plate to go with two RBIs. Cole Kitchens drove in three runs for the Screaming Eagles.

UP NEXT
SIU returns to the diamond on Saturday, March 1, when the Salukis take on Bowling Green at noon. Bowling Green and Southern Indiana will play at 4 p.m.

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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.

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Recap | Salukis Rally to Take Home Opener Over Southern Indiana, 16-12

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Team Stats

Jordan Bach

Michael Mylott

Cecil Lofton

Matt Schark

Players Mentioned

Sam Frizzi

Kaleb Hall

Jaxon Holder

Jordan Huskey

John Lemm

Cecil Lofton

Michael Mylott

Dylan Petrey

Gabe Petrucelli

Matt Schark

Mason Schwalbach

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