SIU is coming off a 33-19 season, and a 15-10 mark in the MVC. The team finished fourth in the standings and advanced to the second round of the conference tournament before falling to tournament champion, Wichita State.
Southern is led by a senior class that has gotten better each year they’ve worn the maroon and white. Shaye Harre, Merrri Anne Patterson, and Jessa Thomas have helped SIU to 82 wins during their careers and the season win total has gone up each of the last two years. These seniors and the rest of the squad were picked to finish third in the preseason MVC coaches’ poll, only ten points separated them and MVC favorite, Drake.
Pitching
SIU’s pitching staff will be young, but experienced. Brianna Jones was Southern’s workhorse a year ago, making 42 appearances in 52 games. She started 27 games, earned 23 victories and logged over 200 innings in her freshman campaign. At the end of the season she was a first team All-MVC selection and was a top-10 finalist for National Fastpitch Coaches Association Freshman of the Year. She will continue to be one of the key starters for the Salukis heading into this season and was named to the 2017 All-MVC preseason team.
Southern’s rotation will also be healthy. Sophomore hurler Nicole Doyle missed a majority of her freshman season due to a knee injury. In limited playing time, Doyle averaged more than a strikeout an inning and threw a no-hitter in her first career NCAA start against Hartford. The sophomore made only five appearances before she was shut down for the season. This past fall Doyle made several starts and looks to work her way into the starting rotation.
The last, but certainly not least, member of the pitching staff is junior, Savanna Dover. Dover enters 2017 looking to pick up where she left off. A season ago she pitched in 12 MVC games and won eight of them. Her performance in the conference play earned her a second team All-MVC nod.
Infield
Southern will again have a very experienced infield Shaye Harre, Sydney Jones, and Savannah Fisher started all 52 games for
Nashville’s Shaye Harre as Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week last season. (MVC file photo)
the Salukis last season. The other returning starter, Jessa Thomas, played in 38 games behind the plate. These four were responsible for 91 RBIs and 87 runs last season. Harre and Jones both earned all conference honors, and Harre was tabbed as a preseason All-Conference selection at first base.
Things will be slightly different in the middle of the infield this season as Fisher will move to her natural position of shortstop. Filling in at second base will be freshman, Maddy Vermejan. Vermejan showed in the fall ball season that she could contribute right away, hitting for average and playing errorless.
Two other freshmen, Kyleigh Decker and Katelyn Massa, also got some starts on the infield this past fall. Decker played mostly at first base and batted in the middle of the lineup. Massa split her playing time between catcher and the DP spot.The last newcomer, Kentucky transfer Haley Andrus, will also see action in her inaugural season in the maroon and white, splitting time at DP and third base.
Outfield
SIU’s outfield will yet again will be anchored by center fielder and two-time All-MVC defensive team selection, Merri Anne Patterson. Joining Patterson for her second year in the outfield is sophomore Eyrika Brandenburg. In her first season Brandenburg started 50 games and led the team in hits.
Rounding out the outfield will be two more newcomers. Freshman Susie Baranski took a majority of the starts in right field this past fall ball season. She batted at the top of the lineup and swung with power. Brittany Turner was the other newcomer that got playing time in the outfield. The junior transfer comes to SIU after playing at Lake Land Community College for two seasons.
Schedule
The Salukis start off their season with three non-conference tournaments on the road before coming home for the Coach B Classic. Following the home tournament Southern heads west for a three-day tournament, hosted by the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.
After these five tournaments SIU plays one non-conference game against Southern Utah before starting their conference portion of their schedule. The Salukis play 13 home conference games, including big series against Drake March 25-26 and Wichita State on April 22-23. Both were selected in front of SIU in the preseason poll.
At the end of the year the team will travel up to Normal, Illinois for the Missouri Valley Conference Championships on May 11.
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