Carbondale Reporter

Southern Illinois University baseball team completed a successful weekend sweep with victories over Bowling Green and Southern Indiana. The Salukis won both games of the doubleheader in Carbondale, defeating Bowling Green 8-6 in the first game and shutting out Southern Indiana 7-0 in the second game. This extends their winning streak to seven consecutive games.

In the first game against Bowling Green, the Falcons initially led 2-0 after Caden Parker's single. However, Gabe Petrucelli and John Lemm responded with back-to-back home runs for Southern Illinois, tying the game at two in the second inning. Matt Schark added another home run, while Jaxon Holder contributed three RBIs, helping Southern Illinois to lead 4-2 by the fourth inning.

Bowling Green regained a brief lead in the sixth inning with Garrett Wright's RBI double but ultimately fell behind again as Southern Illinois scored four runs late in the game. Tim Simay's RBI single initiated this rally, followed by Jaxon Holder's two-run triple and Jordan Bach's RBI double, securing an 8-6 victory for Southern Illinois. Blaine Harpenau earned his first win of the season, while Tanner Gerdes secured his first save.

The second game saw Saluki starter Tyler Timmerman dominate on the mound against Southern Indiana. He pitched six shutout innings with six strikeouts and allowed only two hits without walking any batters. Offensively, Cecil Lofton hit a solo home run to give Southern Illinois a lead they would not relinquish. Jaxon Holder added two more RBIs with a single up the middle during a productive sixth inning that put them ahead by five runs.

Reliever Al Holguin continued strong pitching for Southern Illinois as Kristian Sprawling extended their lead with a two-run single in later innings. Matt Irvine closed out the ninth inning to complete their seventh consecutive win without allowing any walks or giving up more than four hits.

Southern Indiana pitcher Hiroyuki Yamada took his first loss of the season after allowing three earned runs over five innings.

Next on their schedule is a midweek matchup against SIUE at Itchy Jones Stadium on Tuesday at 3 p.m., where they aim to continue their winning momentum.

For ongoing updates about Saluki baseball news and events, fans can follow them on X @SIU_Baseball or find them on Facebook at Facebook.com/SalukiBaseball and Instagram @SIU_Baseball. Additionally, supporters can download their mobile app from both App Store and Google Play Store.