Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Southern Illinois
Players Mentioned
Racers Hit the Road to Face Rival Salukis
4/17/2018 2:14:00 PM | Baseball
GAME 36
Murray State (17-18) at Southern Illinois (18-17)
April 18, 2018
First Pitch: 5 p.m.
Stadium: Jones Stadium
Dimensions: 340 (LF) | 390 (CF) | 340 (RF)
Series History: SIU leads the all-time series 47-20
Last Meeting: MSU 5, SIU 23 – March 7, 2018
Live Stats
Twitter In-Game: @RacersBaseball
First Pitch
MSU opens its four-game road week Wednesday at rival Southern Illinois for the second matchup with the Salukis this season. Both the Racers and SIU played ranked conference opponents overe the weekend and were swept. MSU lost three at home to Tennessee Tech while SIU was swept at Dallas Baptist.
Inside the Matchup
The Racers are 7-26 all-time in Carbondale but have won 2-of-3 on the road in the Moulder Era. The loss in March to the Salukis at Reagan Field snapped a three-game winning streak in the series for MSU. The Racers are 5-2 against the Salukis under Coach Moulder. This will be the latest meeting in a season with SIU since 2010.
Scouting Southern Illinois
Connor Kopach's .366 batting average, 35 runs, 11 doubles and 19 extra-base hits lead Southern Illinois' strong offense. Logan Blackfan leads the Salukis with six home runs and 38 RBIs while hitting .360 on the year. Alex Lyon is the other Saluki hitting above .300 with his .333 average. Lyon is also second on the team with 19 stolen bases on 21 attempts. Kopach has a team-high 20 stolen bases. As a team, SIU is hitting .283 in 2018 and is averaging nearly 6.5 runs per game. The Salukis are also dangerous on the base paths as they have 85 stolen bases on 105 attempts this year.
The SIU pitching staff is led by Brad Harrison's 2.83 ERA and four victories. Harrison also leads the Salukis with 58 strikeouts while his 54 innings pitched are second on the team behind Michael Baird's 61.1 innings. Trey McDaniel leads the team with 18 appearances this season, all out of the bullpen. Ryan Netemeyer has 5-of-6 saves this year for the Salukis. SIU has a team ERA of 4.43 in 2018.
Probable Pitching Matchup
Jake Jones (RHP) (1-1, 6.04 ERA) vs. Hunter Hart (RHP) (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
