SIU Scores 25 Runs; Sycamores’ Garis Hits 3 HRs in Friday Action
Two of the Missouri Valley Conference’s best offenses got together Friday for Game 1 of a much-anticipated series in Normal. Down 3-0 in the 4th inning, it was Murray State’s hammer that struck, scoring 10 runs in the frame to take a 10-3 lead. The Racers scored in every inning thereafter and captured a 19-8, 7-inning run-rule win at Illinois State. Both teams are 2-2 in the Valley.
The Redbirds (10-14, 2-2) had taken the lead in the bottom of the 3rd when Daniel Pacella provided some thunder of his own, hitting a 3-run homer. But it fell apart for the Redbirds in the 4th. Dan Tauken reached on an error that allowed Carson Garner to score to put the Racers (15-6 on the board. Conner Cunningham followed with a grand slam to give Murray State the lead for good, 5-3.
But the Racers were far from done. Garner came back to the plate for a second time in the inning and didn’t disappoint, launching a 3-run homer to make it 8-3. After Tauken and Luke Mistone reached, Dom Decker doubled both home to complete the 10-run barrage.
Jackson McCoy hit a 3-run homer in the 6th to make it 14-5. Jonathan Hogart doubled in 2 in the 7th and Dustin Mercer’s single to score Hogart completed the Murray State scoring, making it 19-5. Mercer recorded both his 200th career hit and 100th career RBI for the Racers in the win.
Luke Stulga hit a 3-run homer in the bottom of the 7th for Illinois State to cut the margin to 11, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the run rule stoppage. It was a TKO for the Racers in Round 1 of this series.
Hogart went 3-for-6 (all doubles) with 3 runs and 2 RBIs. Mercer, Garner, and Decker all had 3 hits each. Cunningham drove in 5 and Garner brought in 4. Hogart, Decker, and McCoy all scored 3 times. Murray State poured out 7 doubles to go with its 3 homers. The Racers have 57 doubles in 21 games, led by 14 from Hogart and Mistone’s 13.
Kyle Gibson and Shai Robinson had 3 hits each for the Redbirds. Stulga drove in 4.
Speaking of Offense, Holy Salukis: Southern Illinois is hot again – winners of 5 straight now and 3-1 in the Valley after a 25-11 (that’s right, I wrote 25-11) victory over Bradley Friday. SIU held a 13-2 lead after batting in the 5th inning, only to see the Braves fight back with 9 runs over the next 3 innings to cut the lead to 14-11 after 7 innings. It appeared we were headed for a grandstand finish in Peoria.
Instead, the Salukis (18-7) went bonkers in the 9th inning, topping even Murray State’s uprising with an 11-run inning. John Lemm drove in 2 with a single but he wasn’t done. He came up again and completed the scoring with a 3-run double later in the frame. Tim Simay doubled in 2 runs and Kaleb Hall brought in 1 with a single. After a bases-loaded walk to Jaxon Holder made it 20-11, Matt Schark singled home 2 more runs before Lemm’s double cleared the bases and gave the Salukis 25 runs.
SIU hit 5 doubles (2 by Lemm), a triple (Schark) and 4 homers (Jordan Bach, Michael Mylott, Gabe Petrucelli, and Hall). Schark scored 3 runs and drove in 2, and Hall had 5 RBIs. Petrucelli scored 4 runs, as did Cecil Lofton (3-for-5, 2 RBIs).
Per Jordan Krause at SIUSalukis.com, the 25 runs were SIU’s most since 2013, when the Salukis walloped Southeast Missouri, 25-3, a game in which Southern Illinois also hit 4 homers.
Despite the 2-touchdown loss, the top-third of Bradley’s (3-18, 0-4) order had quite a night themselves. The trio of Jackson Smith, Cole Smith, and Mason Breidenbach combined to 9-for-12 with 7 runs and 7 RBIs. Cole Smith was 5-for-5 with 3 runs and 4 RBIs. Unfortunately for the Braves, the rest of the lineup went just 1-for-23.
Bears Reach .500 Overall, Stay Perfect in Valley: Missouri State made short work of Bradley Friday night, needing just 7 innings to polish off the Bruins, 16-3. The Bears are the lone undefeated team in the Valley at 4-0 and have evened their overall record at 12-12 thanks to wins this week over Belmont (9-18, 1-3) and #2 Arkansas, in which Missouri State has scored 30 runs.
Zack Stewart made sure the Bears wasted no time jumping on the Bruins Friday, hitting a 3-run homer as part of a 5-run 1st inning. Max Knight added his own 3-run homer in the 4th inning to give the Bears a 15-1 lead. Knight drove in 4 runs for the game. Nick Rodriguez (2-for-3, 3 runs), Jake McCutcheon, and Taeg Gollert all drove in 2 runs each in the win.
After hitting .560 in non-strikeout at-bats at Arkansas during the midweek, the Bears were absolutely lethal again on balls in play Friday. Missouri State was 10-for-19 (.526) in non-strikeout at-bats – making the Bears 24-for-44 in such situations (.545) the past 2 games.
With plenty of run support and little in the way of high-leverage situations to deal with, Missouri State freshman Michael Yusypchuk pitched a complete game, allowing 3 runs on 7 hits with 1 walk and 4 strikeouts on 92 pitches for the 7 innings. It was the 5th complete game turned in by a Valley pitcher this season and per Missouri State Athletics, is the first Bera freshman to pitch a complete game since 2019 (Forrest Barnes, at Southeast Missouri).
Purple Aces Stay 1 Game Back with Friday Victory: After a rough non-conference slate, Evansville had to be boosted by last weekend’s series win at Murray State. Friday, the Purple Aces got another badly needed jolt of great news – a solid start from sophomore Kenton Deverman in a 7-3 victory over visiting Valparaiso. Deverman, the preseason Valley Pitcher of the Year according to D1Baseball and the 2024 MVC Freshman of the Year, was 2-3 with a 6.84 ERA entering Friday’s start, allowing 3 or more earned runs in 4 of his 5 starts.
But there was no sign of that Friday. Deverman went 5 2/3 innings, allowing just 1 run on 6 hits with 1 walk and 3 strikeouts. While Deverman has been around the plate all season (5 walks in 30 2/3 innings), he was able to efficiently get outs Friday and looked more like the form he showed his freshman season. Deverman got 17 outs on just 76 pitches, an impressive 4.47 pitches per out, or 120 pitches for a 9-inning complete game.
Max Hansmann worked the final 3 1/3 innings to get the save, striking out 5 with 0 walks. Ty Rumsey, B.J. Peart, and Matt Flaherty all had 2 hits each for UE (8-17, 3-1). Up 4-2 entering the bottom of the 7th, the Purple Aces took command with 3 runs – 1 on a Harrison Taubert RBI single and 2 more on Flaherty’s double.
Valpo (5-16, 1-3) ace Connor Lockwood was solid again in defeat, allowing 4 runs (3 earned) on 6 hits over 6 innings with 4 strikeouts on 91 pitches. Lockwood has gone at least 6 innings in all but 1 start this season. The 6 hits allowed Friday were the 2nd-lowest Lockwood has given up this season – he allowed 5 in 7 innings while beating Indiana State last weekend.
Have a Day, Keegan Garis!: Indiana State broke open a 5-5 tie in Chicago with 11 runs over the final 3 innings to score a 16-5, 8-inning run-rule win over UIC. Keegan Garis was the straw that stirred the drink for the Sycamores. Garis singled home a run in the 6th, hit a 3-run homer in the 7th (his 3rd of the game), then knocked a 2-run single in the 8th. His 3-for-3 with 6 RBIs in just those 3 innings would probably be a good enough game for most players to earn Player of the Week honors.
Garis finished with a monster line, going 5-for-5 with 3 homers, 3 runs, and 9 RBIs. Garis is the third Valley player to hit 3 homers in a game this season, joining Bradley’s Timmy O’Brien and Illinois State’s Brayden Bakes. His 9 RBIs were just 2 off the school record of 11, set by Dane Tofteland against Northern Illinois in 2017. Garis is the 5th Sycamore to hit 3 homers in a game – joining Dan Kijurna (1983), Mike Eberle (1985), Brady Shoemaker (2008), and Tofteland (2017). Garis is now hitting .337 on the season with 9 homers, 24 RBIs, and 26 runs in 25 games.
Eli Gipson had 3 hits and 3 RBIs for Indiana State (12-13, 3-1), while Carter Beck and Jackson Taylor had 2 hits each. Terrick Thompson-Allen doubled and drove in 3 for UIC (5-18, 1-3) in the loss).
Indiana State reliever Gavin Morris worked the final 4 2/3 innings scoreless, allowing just 2 hits with 2 walks and 5 strikeouts.
Ed Morgans is the founder of MVCBaseball.com. An Evansville graduate, Ed has written about and broadcast college baseball, while following the sport for 40 years.
Life in the Valley 
Leave a comment