Illinois State scored 16 runs in a game one win and nearly rallied in the ninth to win game two, however the Redbirds split a Saturday doubleheader with the Southern Illinois Salukis at Abe Martin Field in Carbondale, Ill. ISU won game one 16-2 and dropped game two 8-6.
Illinois State, along with every other team in the league, still has a chance to qualify for the ConAgra Foods Missouri Valley Conference tournament heading into the last day of the season. As of early Friday evening, there was a four-way tie for the sixth spot in the league. However there were two games still to be played Friday night game two of Wichita State and Bradleys series and game two of the Evansville and Indiana States series. There is no way Illinois State will be out of contention at the end of Friday, however a win Saturday may not guarantee a berth in the tournament.
Picking up the game one win for Illinois State (26-26, 9-14) was sophomore Eric Theisen, who improved his unblemished mark to 6-0 on the year. Theisen pitched an eight-inning complete game, allowing only seven hits and two earned runs while striking out five and walking none.
Taking the loss for Southern Illinois (36-19, 14-9) was junior Tyler Norrick (5-3). The left-hander, who was under the watchful eye of numerous big-league scouts in attendance, lasted only 3.2 innings and gave up seven runs and three walks while striking out three.
Brandon Gale (2-4) took the loss for Illinois State in game two in relief of starter Kitt Kopach. Gale pitched three innings and gave up seven earned runs in the game. Kopach had a very good start for ISU as he lasted five innings and only allowed four hits and one earned run.
Bryan Rueger (9-3) went 8.2 innings for the win for Southern Illinois in game two. The left-hander struck out five and allowed three earned runs. Adam Snyder came on to record the final out of the game, picking up his fifth save of the year.
The Redbirds got off to a blazing start in game one as the first four batters of the game reached base. Matt Bolt led the inning off with a walk, Jay Molina then singled and Ryan Anetsberger walked to load the bases with no outs. Kris Jenkins then hit what should have been a one-run-scoring, double-play, however Saluki shortstop P.J. Finigan let the ball go under his glove, allowing both Bolt and Molina to score. With Anetsberger at third and Jenkins at first, Norrick would balk in the third run of the inning to allow both runners to move up a base. Two batters later Mike Kelley singled to right to bring in the fourth run, giving ISU a 4-0 lead after the top of the first inning.
Southern Illinois wasted no time responding as leadoff hitter Kevin Koski extended his hitting-streak to 30 games with a leadoff triple. Finigan would then bring him home on a ground out, cutting the Bird lead to 4-1 after one.
ISU would get that run back in the top of the second as Molina would double in Blake Schoonover to push the Redbird lead to 5-1.
The Redbirds continued their scoring in the fourth as Jenkins came up with a huge two-out, two-RBI hit that knocked Norrick out of the game and made it a 7-1 ISU lead.
Illinois State added two more in the fifth when Kyle OBrien scored on a wild pitch and Schoonover singled in a run to give the Birds a 9-1 lead.
A Finigan solo homer in the bottom of the sixth cut the lead to 9-2 but ISU responded in the top of the seventh as Molina and Jenkins both drove in runs for an 11-2 advantage.
The Birds would put the nail in the Salukis in the eighth as they brought home five more runs, including three on a bases-loaded double by Anetsberger, which extended the freshmans season-high hitting streak to 13 games. Illinois State took a 16-2 lead into the bottom of the eighth where Theisen held his ground, giving the Birds the 16-2 eight-inning win.
Game two started off much like game one, with Bolt being hit by a pitch to lead the game off. Molina then laid down a perfect sac bunt to third that Saluki third baseman Matt Brewer threw away, along the runners to advance to second and third. Rueger would retire the next two hitters, but freshman Kevin Konsler came up with a two-out triple to score two runs and give ISU a 2-0 lead after the top of the first.
OBrien knocked in another ISU run in the fourth to move the Illinois State lead to 3-0 after the top of the fourth.
The Salukis would get on the board with a Brewer home run in the fifth inning to cut the Redbird lead to 3-1. Southern would threaten again in the bottom of the fifth when they put runners on second and third with two outs. Nathan Emrick lifted the first pitch he saw from Kopach to foul territory up the first base line. OBrien tracked the ball from his first base position the entire way and slammed into the waist-high wall that runs up the first base line, jack-knifing his body over the wall but making the crucial catch to end the inning.
Brewer would tie the game in the bottom of the sixth when he would double home two runs off of Redbird reliever Brandon Gale to tie the game at 3-3. Tyler Lairson would follow Brewers double with one of his own to give SIU a 4-3 lead and Koski would extend his hitting-streak to 31 games with another double, making it a 5-3 game after six.
SIU would add three more insurance runs in the eighth, two of which came on a two-run homer by Finigan, his second home run of the day, giving the Salukis a 8-3 lead.
The Redbirds would stage their typical ninth inning rally in the game as they loaded the bases with one out. Molina would single to bring in two and Anetsberger singled to drive in another, making it 8-6. Illinois State would then load the bases, putting the tying run on second, but O'Brien would fly out to left to end the game.
The two teams conclude their three-game series tomorrow with the final game of the regular season. First pitch from Abe Martin Field is set for 1 p.m.
