Salukis Drop Opener to Sycamores after Nightmarish Eighth Inning

Friday, May 1

6 PM

Southern Illinois University

17-27, 8-8

Indiana State

25-20, 11-5

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Indiana St.	0	0	0	1	1	0	0	6	0	8	11	1
Southern Ill.	1	0	0	0	2	2	0	0	0	5	7	2

Andrew Evans loads up to pitch during Southern Illinois' 8-5 loss to Indiana State Friday, May 1, 2026, at Itchy Jones Stadium in Carbondale, Ill.

Photo by: Abby Harris

Salukis Drop Opener to Sycamores after Nightmarish Eighth Inning

05/01/2026 | 11:17:00 | Baseball

Box Score

By: Jordan Kruse, SIUSalukis.com

CARBONDALE, Ill. - After Southern Illinois took a three-run lead into the eighth, Indiana State tacked on six runs in a flurry of wild events to take a dramatic Friday night game 8-5 from the Salukis.

Kristian Sprawling did his part for the Dawgs, beginning his four-hit night with an opposite-field solo home run to get the scoring started in the first.

Friday's starting pitcher, Andrew Evans, was solid on the mound, keeping the ball in the yard against the Missouri Valley Conference's best home-run hitting team.

A leadoff triple from Nick Sutherlin helped the Sycamores get on the board in the fourth, as Mason Roell immediately drove him in with a single.

ISU took its first lead on a sacrifice fly in the fifth, an unearned run on Evans' ledger. The right-hander left after five complete innings and 100 pitches thrown, striking out six.

Productive outs were the name of the game for SIU in the fifth and sixth. Kye Watson and Julio Guerrero put Southern back in front with back-to-back RBI groundouts in the fifth, while Kaleb Hall and Jaden Flores had back-to-back sacrifice flies in the sixth.

Jack MacIntosh threw scoreless frames in the sixth and seventh to keep SIU in front.

Leading 5-2 after seven, the top of the eighth proved to be one the Salukis would hope to soon forget. After a leadoff walk, a controversial foul-ball call kept the Salukis from turning a potential double play. MacIntosh then walked his second batter in a row and was removed from the game. A throwing error on a sacrifice bunt allowed the Sycamores to score a run and put the tying run in scoring position with none out. A walk reloaded the bases, and a sky-high chopped ground ball turned into an infield single. Dawson Hargrove powered through the next two batters with a strikeout and a pop-up, just one out away from preventing further damage. On the second pitch of the at-bat, Roell drove the ball over the left-field fence for a grand slam. In the blink of an eye, SIU trailed 8-5 in the eighth.

The Salukis brought the tying run to the plate with two in the ninth, but a flyout ended the potential comeback.

UP NEXT
Southern aims to even the series Saturday at 6 p.m. The 1986 Saluki Baseball team will be offered prior to the contest.

FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on Twitter 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.