NORMAL, Ill. – No. 3-seeded Southern Illinois turned Duffy Bass Field into a launching pad Wednesday afternoon, hitting a school-record and Missouri Valley Conference Tournament-record 10 home runs during a 19-17 loss to No. 4 seed UIC in the second round of the MVC Tournament.
Southern (37-19) sent eight home runs out in the first four innings and finished with 16 total hits, plating at least one run in six innings. The Salukis scored eight runs in the third inning alone and nearly erased a 19-13 deficit in the final three frames.
The Salukis’ 10 home runs came from six different players. Michael Mylott led the charge with a career-high three homers and five RBIs, including a 460-foot blast to center in the sixth. Cecil Lofton added two homers, including a grand slam in the third as part of a six-RBI performance.
John Lemm homered twice and drove in three runs, including a two-run shot in the third that pushed Southern’s lead to 11-4. Gabe Petrucelli, Jaxon Holder and Matt Schark also went deep, with Holder adding three hits and an RBI.
Schark’s record-setting home run came in the seventh inning, a solo shot to right center that marked his 24th of the season and 36th of his Saluki career, breaking the all-time Southern Illinois home run record.
The teams combined for 36 runs on 36 hits, including 15 extra-base hits. SIU led 12-4 after three innings, but UIC (21-31) answered with 15 runs from the fourth through seventh innings, including a seven-run sixth that gave the Flames their first lead since the second inning.
Southern’s bullpen was unable to stop the bleeding despite six different arms taking the mound. Gavan Wernsing (3-1) was saddled with the loss after allowing four runs in 1.1 innings. Jackson Payne started and gave up seven runs over three frames.
UIC’s Thomas Curry led the Flames with a home run and four RBIs, while Luke Nowak went 5-for-6 with two doubles and three RBIs. The Flames totaled 20 hits and scored in six different innings.
Trailing by six in the ninth, Mylott crushed his third homer of the game to cut it to 19-17. Holder followed with a double to put the tying run on deck, but SIU couldn’t complete the rally. The final three batters were retired to end a wild four-hour contest.
Southern Illinois made Valley history with its unprecedented home run barrage. The 10-homer performance broke the previous MVC Tournament team record of eight by Missouri State in 1996. The 17 runs also marked the Salukis’ highest-scoring output in a postseason game since 1990.
