CARBONDALE, Ill. – Indiana State put together a six-run rally in the top of the eighth inning with
Mason Roell providing the go-ahead blow with a grand slam and
Colby Morse worked 3.0 one-hit innings in relief as the Sycamores took Friday's series opener over Southern Illinois, 8-5.
Trailing 5-2 heading into the top of the eighth inning, the Sycamores (25-20, 11-5) put their first five batters on base in the inning to pressure the SIU (17-27, 8-8) defense.
Caleb Niehaus and
Nomar Garcia both walked to open the inning chasing SIU reliever Jack MacIntosh, before Dawson Hargrove (0-1) came in relief to face the top of the Sycamore lineup.
Hargrove fielded
Colin Sander's sacrifice bunt attempt, but threw the ball down the right field line allowing Niehaus to score the first Indiana State run. After
Carter Beck walked to load the bases,
Emil Estrella connected on a high bouncing single back to the mound and beat the throw with Garcia crossing the plate to cut the deficit down to 5-4.
After Hargrove retired both
Caden Miller and
Nick Sutherlin,
Mason Roell came up to the plate and connected on the go-ahead grand slam over the left field wall, clearing the bases and giving the Sycamores the 8-5 lead.
Colby Morse (4-1) retired the Salukis in order in the bottom of the eighth, and
Justin Hoff (S, 3) pitched around a pair of runners to get Kye Watson to fly out to
Caleb Niehaus in left field to close out the ninth as Indiana State secured the series opening win.
SIU took the early 1-0 lead in bottom of the first inning on Kristian Sprawing's leadoff home run. The Sycamores answered in the fourth as
Nick Sutherlin tripled and
Mason Roell singled him home to tie the game up.
The Sycamores went up 2-1 in the fifth on
Nick Sutherlin's sacrifice fly to shallow center with
Emil Estrella sliding home ahead of the throw to give Indiana State the lead. SIU scored two runs in the fifth and added two more in the sixth to take the 5-2 lead ahead of the Sycamores' eighth-inning rally.
Mason Roell drove in a season-high five RBIs and added a stolen base in the win, while
Emil Estrella went 3-for-5 with an RBI, two runs scored, and a stolen base.
Jeremy Martinez added a multi-hit game at the plate.
Colby Morse picked up the win on the mound going 3.0 innings allowing one hit and two unearned runs while striking out two.
Ryan Karst took the no-decision on the mound allowing five hits and three runs in the start, while
Justin Hoff picked up his third save of the season with a scoreless ninth inning.
Kristian Sprawling recorded four of SIU's seven hits in the game, including a solo home run, while Kye Watson and Jacob McKenzie both doubled in the loss.
Andrew Evans went 5.0 innings allowing four hits and two runs (one earned), while striking out six in the no-decision.
How They Scored
- SIU took the early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on Kristian Sprawling's solo home run down the right field line.
- The Sycamores tied it up at 1-1 in the top of the fourth as Mason Roell followed Nick Sutherlin's triple with an RBI single up the middle to even the score.
- Indiana State went up 2-1 in the top of the fifth as Emil Estrella tagged up and scored on Nick Sutherlin's fly ball to shallow center field.
- The Salukis took the 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth without a ball leaving the infield as Jaden Flores scored on Kye Watson's RBI grounder, while Mason Schwalbach scored on Julio Guerrero's RBI ground out up the middle.
- SIU added to the lead in the bottom of the sixth courtesy of a Sycamore error as Gabe Petrucelli and Jacob McKenzie both scored on a pair of sacrifice flies following a two-base error on a dropped fly ball to right field to give the Salukis the 5-2 lead.
- Indiana State rallied to score six runs in the top of the eighth inning with Colin Sander (error on sacrifice bunt) and Emil Estrella (RBI infield single) both bringing home runs, before Mason Roell connected on the go-ahead grand slam with two outs in the inning to provide the final 8-5 scoring margin.
News and Notes
- Caden Miller extended his on-base streak to 24 consecutive games following his single in the seventh inning. He finished 1-for-5 from the plate.
- Carter Beck extended his on-base streak to 29 consecutive games after drawing a pair of walks and scoring a run in the game.
- Mason Roell's grand slam marked Indiana State's eighth grand slam of the 2026 season and first since Carter Beck hit a grand slam on April 3 against UIC.
- Mason Roell became the fourth different Sycamore to hit a grand slam in 2026 joining Emil Estrella (3), Carter Beck (3), and Nick Sutherlin to achieve the feat on the year.
- Mason Roell recorded his ninth home run and his seventh stolen base in the 2026 season, putting him within reach of a 10-10 season, joining Carter Beck (11-9) and Emil Estrella (8-15) in Sycamores hoping to achieve the feat this year.
- Mason Roell's five RBI game marked a season-high for the Sycamore third baseman.
- Colby Morse recorded his fourth win of the season in relief in his 20th appearance on the mound.
- Indiana State improved to 7-3 in weekend series openers in the 2026 season, including a 5-1 mark in Valley play in the first game of the weekend.
Up Next
Indiana State and Southern Illinois continue the series tomorrow night with first pitch set for 7 p.m. ET at Itchy Jones Stadium. The game will be carried live on ESPN+ and 105.5 The Legend.
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