Recap | Salukis Finish Off Sweep of Illinois State with 8-4 Win on Sunday

Sunday, March 16

Carbondale, Ill.

12 PM

Southern Illinois University

11-14, 3-0

Illinois State

6-21, 0-3

Illinois State

Southern Illinois

Recap | Salukis Finish Off Sweep of Illinois State with 8-4 Win on Sunday

03/16/2025 | 3:34:00 | Softball

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: Dominic Hoscher, SIUSalukis.com

CARBONDALE, Ill. - The Southern Illinois University softball team (11-14, 3-0) won its sixth straight game on Sunday against Illinois State, 8-4, completing the sweep of the Redbirds.

"I thought we had a good mix of righties and lefties striking the ball well," head coach Jen Sewell said. "I still want us to be a little more aggressive early in the count, but when you come out with three wins, you can't over complain in the locker room."

Inside the Box Score

Six of Southern's eight runs came in the bottom of the second inning, with its other two coming in the fourth. Both teams had nine hits and two errors apiece on Sunday.
Three different pitchers appeared for SIU, with McKenzie Newcomb (8-5) tallying her third win of the season after pitching 2.0 innings in relief. Newcomb allowed one hit, no runs, no walks, and had five strikeouts.
Emily Williams' big weekend continued on Sunday, going 2-4 with a home run, three RBI, and one run scored. Emma Austin and Anna Carder also had two-hit days, with Austin going 2-4 with one run scored and Carder going 2-3 with two runs scored and two RBI.
Maleah Blomenkamp and Erin Lee also had productive performances at the plate, as Blomenkamp finished the game 1-4 with one run scored and two RBI while Lee went 1-3 with a double, one run scored, and one walk.

"We have enough offense to put a gap on people and make them feel like they're out of a game," Sewell said.

How it Happened
Freshman Emma Gipson got the start and was sharp through the first two innings, allowing just one hit, no runs, one walk, with two strikeouts to begin the game.

After leaving two runners on base in the first, the Salukis' bats exploded in the bottom of the second inning. Lee got things started with a leadoff double and after an Addi Baker single and Amanda Knutson walk, the junior second baseman was driven in by Alexis Rudd on a fielder's choice to make it 1-0.

Blomenkamp drove in two more with a single to left center, which was followed up by a two-run double by Carder with two outs. Williams' first RBI of the game came right after Carder's hit to make it 6-0 in favor of Southern Illinois.

The Redbirds scored a pair of unearned runs in the top of the third to cut the SIU lead to 6-2. Fellow freshman Kaytee Dahlstrom relieved Gipson with two outs and struck out the first batter she faced to end the inning.

A solo home run in the top half of the fourth by Illinois State made it a three-run game, but Southern answered quickly in the bottom part of the inning. After a Carder single, Williams homered to left center for her third home run of the year to put the Salukis ahead, 8-3.

Illinois State added another unearned run in the fifth to make it 8-4 with Southern still on top.

After a leadoff double to begin the sixth, Newcomb entered the game to relieve Dahlstrom and was dominant once again for the Salukis. The senior struck out all three batters she went up against in the inning to preserve the four-run lead.

A pair of strikeouts in the seventh by Newcomb sealed the 8-4 victory for Southern Illinois.

Up Next
Southern will face a quick turnaround as it hosts Missouri State for a midweek series at Charlotte West Stadium starting on Tuesday, March 18, at 5 p.m. The two teams will meet again on Wednesday, March 19, at 4 p.m.

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