Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Thursday, May 14
6 PM
Southern Illinois University
22-29, 13-9
6
vs
4
Valparaiso
11-37, 4-18
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valparaiso | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 11 | 1 |
| Southern Ill. | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | X | 6 | 11 | 0 |
Dylan Petrey loads up to fire a pitch during Southern Illinois' 6-4 win over Valparaiso Friday night at Itchy Jones Stadium in Carbondale, Ill.
Photo by: Abby Harris
Salukis Take Series Opener 6-4 over Beacons
05/14/2026 | 11:32:00 | Baseball
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Southern Illinois defeated Valparaiso 6-4 thanks in large part to a big effort out of the bullpen from Dylan Petrey Thursday night at Itchy Jones Stadium. The Salukis scored six runs despite not recording an extra-base hit.
Cecil Lofton put the Dawgs on the board early with an RBI single in the bottom of the first, followed by an RBI fielder's choice from Tim Simay.Â
Andrew Evans started Friday night's contest and cruised through his three innings pitched, allowing just three singles.
Jacob McKenzie came around to score on an error in the bottom of the third, and Gabe Petrucelli put Southern up 4-0 with an RBI single down the right-field line.
The Beacons cut the lead in half in the fourth, but Kye Watson immediately got a run back with his first RBI single in the bottom of the inning.
Both staffs settled down around the halfway point, as Petrey escaped jams in the fourth and fifth innings and followed that up with spotless sixth and seventh frames. The redshirt senior has provided his best outings in Missouri Valley Conference play, lowering his league ERA to 2.31 after 3.2 scoreless innings Thursday night.
Watson picked up his reliever by breaking the game's dry spell with what ended up being a very important insurance run in the eighth with his second run-scoring of the game, extending Southern's lead back to four at 6-2.
Meade Johnson faced adversity as the go-ahead run came to the plate with two runs in and one out in the ninth, but he fanned the final two batters and secured the win for SIU.
Petrey (W, 3-2) got the win for SIU while Johnson (S, 3) earned his third save of the season.
UP NEXT
The Salukis will look to claim the series over Valpo Friday night. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
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.
Cecil Lofton put the Dawgs on the board early with an RBI single in the bottom of the first, followed by an RBI fielder's choice from Tim Simay.Â
Andrew Evans started Friday night's contest and cruised through his three innings pitched, allowing just three singles.
Jacob McKenzie came around to score on an error in the bottom of the third, and Gabe Petrucelli put Southern up 4-0 with an RBI single down the right-field line.
The Beacons cut the lead in half in the fourth, but Kye Watson immediately got a run back with his first RBI single in the bottom of the inning.
Both staffs settled down around the halfway point, as Petrey escaped jams in the fourth and fifth innings and followed that up with spotless sixth and seventh frames. The redshirt senior has provided his best outings in Missouri Valley Conference play, lowering his league ERA to 2.31 after 3.2 scoreless innings Thursday night.
Watson picked up his reliever by breaking the game's dry spell with what ended up being a very important insurance run in the eighth with his second run-scoring of the game, extending Southern's lead back to four at 6-2.
Meade Johnson faced adversity as the go-ahead run came to the plate with two runs in and one out in the ninth, but he fanned the final two batters and secured the win for SIU.
Petrey (W, 3-2) got the win for SIU while Johnson (S, 3) earned his third save of the season.
UP NEXT
The Salukis will look to claim the series over Valpo Friday night. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
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.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Petrey, Dylan (3-2)
L: Adam Guazzo (2-7)
S: Johnson, Meade (3)
Valparaiso
Batting:
2B: Louie Kegerreis 1 ; C. Schembra 1 ; J. Gauthier 1 ; C. Sullivan 1
RBI: M. Kuska 2 ; C. Schembra 1 ; J. Gauthier 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Louie Kegerreis 1 ; B. Pleau 1 ; G. Bennett 1 ; C. Sullivan 1
Batting:
RBI: Watson, Kye 2 ; Lofton, Cecil 1 ; Simay, Tim 1 ; Petrucelli, Gabe 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Sprawling, Kristian 1 ; Guerrero, Julio 1 ; McKenzie, Jacob 2 ; Mylott, Michael 1 ; Schwalbach, Mason 1
SB: Sprawling, Kristian 1 ; Watson, Kye 1 ; McKenzie, Jacob 1 ; Flores, Jaden 1
HBP: Flores, Jaden 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
1
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
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INF
/ Baseball
C
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RHP
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INF
/ Baseball
INF
/ BaseballOF
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