Three more hits in DH sweep for Peters in Saluki sweep
Former Okotoks Dawg and Pembina Valley Oriole Tristan Peters (Winkler, Man.) added three more hits in a doubleheader for his undefeated Salukis.
SIU sweeps doubleheader from Evansville
By John Lock
CARBONDALE, Ill. - The No. 25-ranked Southern Illinois Salukis won both ends of a doubleheader against Evansville on Saturday afternoon at Itchy Jones Stadium.
The Salukis won the first game 5-3 and the second game 9-4. SIU improved to 14-0 on the season and 3-0 in MVC play, and the Salukis have won 19-straight dating back to last year, the longest active winning streak in the nation.
“To be here for as long as we were, and still be locked in when the second game was over, was good to see,” SIU head coach Lance Rhodes said. “We were here at 11:30 in the morning, and wrapping up at 7:30. Sometimes, the mind starts to wander; and when the mind wanders, the play starts to go backwards. We didn’t have that. We stayed in it start-to-finish, and that was great to see.”
In the first game, a seven-inning game under the Missouri Valley Conference’s new four-game weekend format, the Salukis (14-0, 3-0 MVC) struck early and held on late. Evan Martin hit a first-inning home run. Grey Epps hit a three-run homer in the second inning to give SIU a 4-0 lead. But Evansville (6-9, 0-3 MVC) chipped away, scoring two in the fourth and one in the sixth to get within 4-3.
“We needed to get tested. Yesterday, we came from behind. Today, we played in close games,” Rhodes said. “It was good to have our guys under pressure, because that’s when you see what guys are made of. It was good to see our guys compete and not give in and perform well under that pressure.”
CF Tristan Peters (Winkler, Man.) doubled in the first inning of the opener.
In the second game, SIU jumped ahead 2-0 with a first inning two-run single by Philip Archer. Peters, who had worked a walk, came around to score. Evansville tied the game in the third with a homer, but SIU scored the next six runs to take an 8-2 lead into the late innings. Again, the Aces climbed back, scoring two runs in the seventh to get within 8-4, and Evansville had two runners and could have drawn even closer, but Bubba Hall got SIU out of the jam.
In both games, SIU added big insurance runs late. In the first game, after Evansville got within 4-3, Evan Martin hit an RBI single in the sixth to give SIU an extra run of breathing room, and Trey McDaniel made it hold up with a perfect seventh inning. In the second game, Vinni Massaglia hit an RBI double in the eighth to push SIU ahead 9-4, and Hall closed the door for his first career save.
SIU started pitched well in both games. Ben Chapman has started four games for SIU and earned the win in all four. Today, he allowed two runs (one earned) in five innings before giving way to Trey McDaniel, who earned his fourth save of the season with a two-inning save. In the second game, Brad Harrison struck out a season-high nine batters in six innings and allowed just three hits.
In a lineup full of incredibly hot hitters, Vinni Massaglia was the star of the day. He was 4-for-7 with a double, a homer and four RBIs today, helping SIU clinch the series. Massaglia homered to left field in the third scoring Peters who led off the inning with a double to left field.
J.T. Weber went 4-for-5 on the day, as well, and Evan Martin went 4-for-8 with three RBIs.
Peters, who singled, stole second and scored in the fourth of the nitecap, extended his hitting streak to 12 games and has 10 multi-hit games already this season.