Carbondale Reporter

Southern Illinois' baseball team secured a crucial victory against the Belmont Bruins with a final score of 5-4 in Carbondale, Illinois. The win was decided by a walk-off infield single from Matthew Simay on Thursday, April 17.

The Bruins took the lead early in the game with an RBI ground out. However, the Salukis responded quickly, scoring four runs at the bottom of the second inning. Jordan Bach contributed with an RBI walk, followed by Matt Schark's bases-clearing double. Schark now boasts 50 RBIs, leading the Missouri Valley Conference.

Belmont narrowed the gap in the fourth inning with two RBIs from Jake Maddox and Pete Daniel. Southern Illinois' starting pitcher, Tyler Timmerman, exited the game in the same inning after pitching 4.2 innings. He allowed three earned runs, struck out four batters, and walked two.

In the seventh inning, Belmont's Ty Allen hit a solo home run to tie the game at four. The teams remained scoreless through the ninth inning, with strong pitching performances from Southern's Sam Frizzi and Belmont's Andrew Perry leading to extra innings.

Frizzi delivered a 1-2-3 top of the tenth inning that set up the eventual Saluki victory. Gabe Petrucelli reached base with a walk, and Cecil Lofton's single advanced him to scoring position. Simay then delivered the game-winning hit to score Petrucelli.

Frizzi secured the win, improving his record to 2-2. He pitched two scoreless innings, striking out three while facing the minimum number of batters. Andrew Perry took the loss for the Bruins, moving to 1-2 for the season.

Southern Illinois and Belmont are scheduled to conclude the series with a doubleheader on Friday, starting at 2 p.m.

Fans can stay updated on the Salukis via social media by following @SIU_Baseball on X, Facebook, and Instagram. Alternatively, they can download the "Salukis" Mobile App available on the App Store and Google Play Store.