Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Saturday, March 7
11 AM
Southern Illinois University
8
vs
16
UNLV
Henry Kufa steals second base in Southern Illinois' 16-8 loss to UNLV on Saturday, March 7, 2026, at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn.
Photo by: Abby Harris
Late Rally Falls Short as Salukis Drop Cambria Classic Matchup to UNLV
03/07/2026 | 10:08:00 | Baseball
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Southern Illinois rallied late but could not overcome a big eighth inning from UNLV as the Salukis fell 16-8 Saturday morning at U.S. Bank Stadium in the Cambria College Classic.
SIU (5-8) finished the game with eight runs on 11 hits and scored in each of the final three innings while continuing to battle late.
UNLV (11-5) struck first with a run in the opening inning before putting together a four-run second inning to take a 5-0 lead early.
Southern Illinois broke through in the seventh inning. Jacob McKenzie drove a ball to right field that resulted in a two-run triple, scoring Kaleb Hall and Tim Simay to put the Salukis on the board. The play came when the right fielder lost the ball in the sky, allowing McKenzie to reach third and bring home both runners. Michael Mylott later reached on a fielder's choice that allowed McKenzie to score and cut the deficit to 5-3.
UNLV answered with a 10-run eighth inning to extend the lead, but the Salukis continued to respond offensively. Julio Guerrero tripled to right-center field later in the inning to drive in Andrew Savage and Kristian Sprawling. Another run scored on an error to make it 15-6.
Southern Illinois added two more runs in the ninth inning when Sprawling launched a two-run home run to left field, bringing home Blake Kimball and trimming the final margin to 16-8.
Guerrero led the Saluki offense with a 2-for-4 performance that included two RBIs and a run scored. McKenzie finished with two RBIs on his seventh-inning triple, while Sprawling drove in two runs with his ninth-inning homer. Tim Simay, Hall, Savage and Kimball each crossed the plate for SIU as the Salukis totaled 11 hits.
On the mound, Meade Johnson took the loss after starting for Southern Illinois. Dawson Hargrove and Josh Hyneman combined for multiple innings of relief before the Rebels' eighth-inning surge.
UP NEXT
Southern Illinois will wrap up play in the Cambria College Classic on Sunday when the Salukis face South Dakota State.
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