NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State defeated Southern Illinois in its first Missouri Valley Conference game, 4-1. Brent Headrick and Colton Johnson faced just five batters over the minimum in the victory. The Redbirds (33-22) will play the winner of Evansville and Indiana State tomorrow at 7 p.m.
Top Hitters
Pitching Breakdown:
- Brent Headrick (Starter, W, 9-3): 7.0 IP, 2 Hits, 1 Run, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K;s
- Colton Johnson: 2.0 IP, 1 Hit, 1 BB, 2 K's
Quote from Coach Holm on Parola's home run getting the team going
"We knew that we needed a little more breathing room than just the old fashioned 1-0. So, that home run got things ignited. College baseball is about momentum, and he provided us a little momentum, Â and then we strung a couple more together, and all of a sudden we put up a three spot in the inning."
Scoring Breakdown:
- The Redbirds got their first run of the game in the bottom of the second when Peterson came home to score. Illinois State had runners on the corners when Zouras took off for second base. Meanwhile, Peterson came home to score while Zouras was in between bases. Peterson crossed home plate before Zouras was tagged out for the final out of the inning. Illinois State led Southern Illinois, 1-0.
- Parola hit a leadoff home run in the bottom of the sixth to make the score, 2-0. Joe Butler singled to left field to bring home Libman. Later in the inning, Zouras doubled to right-center field to bring home Joe Butler. The Redbirds led the Salukis, 4-0 after six innings.
- The Salukis got a run in the top of the seventh inning on a sacrifice fly to right field to make the score, 4-1. That would conclude the scoring in the game.
Up Next:
The Redbirds return to action tomorrow when they will play at 7 p.m. Illinois State will play the winner of Evansville and Indiana State in the final game of the evening. For updates on Illinois State Baseball, follow the Redbirds on Twitter (@RedbirdBaseball) and Instagram (@isuredbirdbaseball).
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
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