Southern Illinois Cruises Past Omaha in Cambria Classic Opener

Friday, March 6

U.S. Bank Stadium

3 PM

Southern Illinois University

5-7

Omaha

4-8

Southern Ill.

Omaha

Redshirt Freshman Kye Watson (9) waits for a pitch during Southern Illinois' 9-1 win over Omaha in its opening game in the Cambria Classic at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn.

Photo by: Abby Harris

Southern Illinois Cruises Past Omaha in Cambria Classic Opener

03/06/2026 | 11:54:00 | Baseball

Box Score

By: Aaron Price, SIUSalukis.com

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Southern Illinois jumped out to an early lead and never looked back Friday afternoon, rolling past Omaha 9-1 in the opening game of the Cambria Classic at U.S. Bank Stadium.

The Salukis (5-7) scored in three of the first four innings and pounded out 14 hits while receiving a strong outing on the mound from Andrew Evans to secure the victory.

SIU wasted no time getting on the board in the top of the first. Kye Watson singled and Henry Kufa followed with another base hit before Tim Simay delivered a two-run double to left center to give the Salukis a quick 2-0 advantage.

Southern Illinois added three more runs in the second inning to stretch the lead. Michael Mylott singled and Mason Schwalbach followed with a base hit before Jaden Flores drove in a run with a double. Kufa later added a two-run single to push the lead to 5-0.

The Salukis extended the margin again in the third when Julio Guerrero came home on a wild pitch, making it 6-0.

SIU put the game firmly out of reach in the sixth inning. Schwalbach opened the frame with a single and later scored on Watson's RBI single. Simay then delivered another big hit, a two-run double to left center, giving the Salukis a commanding 9-0 lead.

Watson led the offensive attack, finishing 3-for-5 with two runs scored and an RBI. Simay drove in four runs while going 2-for-5 with two doubles. Kufa added two hits and two RBIs, while Schwalbach and Flores each recorded two hits.

On the mound, Evans turned in a strong start to earn the win. The right-hander tossed five scoreless innings, allowing five hits while striking out three and walking one. Dylan Petrey worked an inning of relief before Blake Kimball closed out the final three innings to secure the victory.

Omaha's lone run came in the sixth inning on an RBI single from Hayden Lewis.

Southern Illinois finished the afternoon with nine runs on 14 hits and did not commit an error defensively.

UP NEXT

The Salukis continue play in the Cambria Classic on Saturday morning when they face UNLV at 11 a.m. before wrapping up the weekend Sunday against South Dakota State.

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