This Week in Saluki Athletics: April 6-12

04/06/2026 | 4:26:00 | General

By: Peter Borkowski

CARBONDALE, Ill. – Another full week of Saluki athletics has come and gone. Softball, baseball, women's golf, and track and field were all in action last week and are back at it this week. Additionally, men's golf resumes play this week with a pair of competitions.

Softball (21-13, 10-4)
The softball got back on track this weekend with a three-game sweep at Indiana State.

SIU first won game one on Sunday 6-1. Southern got three home runs courtesy of Sage Grann, Emily Williams, and Sydney Potter, with Potter driving in four runs. In the circle, Brooklynn Danielson allowed one run across seven innings of work.

Southern then won game two 10-4. Williams hit a grand slam on her way to five RBIs while Maleah Blomenkamp had a multi-RBI game. Hailey Lucas pitched every inning for the Salukis.

The Salukis wrapped up the series with a 13-3 win on Monday. Potter and Williams hit homers again while Emily Delgado earned the win after 6.1 innings of work.

The week ahead is a full slate for softball. On Tuesday, April 7, the Salukis host Evansville for a doubleheader at 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. Southern then travels to Drake for a weekend series. On Friday, April 10, they play at 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. They then play again on Saturday, April 11, at 2 p.m.

Baseball (12-18, 3-3)
Baseball grabbed a conference series win this week.

But first, SIU fell 3-1 to Lindenwood on Tuesday. Jaden Flores drove in SIU's lone run as the Salukis got a good start out of Alec Ammerman, who threw seven innings of shutout ball.

Southern then picked up a 4-3 win over Illinois State on Friday. Cecil Lofton hit a long ball for SIU as he and Henry Kufa collected all three RBIs for the Salukis. On the mound, Andrew Evans gave up just two hits and no runs over eight innings of work.

SIU then routed the Redbirds 9-1 on Saturday. Kufa hit a homer on his way to three RBIs. Kye Watson had a multi-RBI game as well with two. Troy Shepard and Dawson Hargrove combined for nine innings of one-run ball.

The Salukis then dropped the series finale 10-4 on Sunday. Kufa drove in half of the Salukis' runs while Kristian Sprawling and Bryce Habuda had the other RBIs.

Up first this week is a Tuesday, April 7, home game against SEMO at 6 p.m. SIU then hits the road for a series at Evansville. On Friday, April 10, they play at 6 p.m. They play again on Saturday, April 11, at 2 p.m. before closing out the series at 1 p.m. on Sunday, April 12.

Track and Field
Track and field competed in the Joey Haines Invitational last week with plenty of Salukis finishing ahead of the pack.

Xavier L. Preston, Leah Thames, Shane Ashton, Jordan Smith, Layla Watson, Otto De St Jeor, and Layla Watson all won events for the Salukis.

This week, SIU competes at SIUE's Cougar Classic, which takes place between Friday, April 10, and Saturday, April 11.

Women's Golf
Women's golf was in action last week at the Colonel Classic in Richmond, Kentucky, where the squad placed seventh.

Individually, Kayla Sayyalinh led the charge and tied for seventh, her third top-10 finish this season. Calli Smith also placed top-30 with her 25th-place finish.

The Salukis have their final competition before the conference meet on Saturday, April 11, and Sunday, April 12.

Men's Golf
The men's golf team is back at this week at the Racer Intercollegiate today, and tomorrow, Tuesday, April 7. They then compete again this weekend at the Robert Kepler Invitational on Saturday, April 11, and Sunday, April 12.

Follow the Salukis
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on X at @SIUSalukis, on Instagram at @siusalukis , and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SalukiAthletics/. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.