Feb. 7, 2003
ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. - Purdue's bid to open the 2003 campaign with a victory at the Triple Crown Invitational was thwarted by a 3-0 defeat at the hands of the Southern Illinois Salukis.
SIU took a 2-0 lead in the first inning as Katie Jordan reached on a fielder's choice and scored on a two-run homerun to center field by Katie Louis.
Sophomore second baseman Andrea Hillsey singled to the pitcher and advanced to second on a passed ball in the bottom of the first, but was left stranded. Senior third baseman Jesse Jones had a solid hit up the middle in the second inning, but again, never found her way home.
The Boilermakers had another chance in the fourth inning as Jones doubled to center field. Freshman shortstop Tricia Lilley kept the center fielder busy with a single of her own. Jones advanced to third on the play, but was called out at the plate, trying to put Purdue on the board.
The Salukis extended their lead in the fifth inning as Samantha Carter singled to second and advanced on a sacrifice bunt. Adie Viefhaus singled to center, scoring Carter and giving SIU a 3-0 lead. Sophomore Shelli Messer replaced Leighann Burke on the mound following the RBI single as SIU grounded out to short to end the inning. Burke exited the game after striking out five of the 20 batters she faced.
In the bottom of the fifth, designated player Laura Martin hit a fly ball to right field, but wound up on second base after an error by the right fielder. Messer added to her duties in the game by pinch running for Martin, but found herself stranded after advancing to third.
Catcher Kristen Schell (RS Fr., Poway, CA) helped on the defensive side, picking off Carter who had reached base on a fielder's choice for the second out of the inning. Purdue went down 1-2-3 to seal the victory for Southern Illinois.
Southern Illinois scored three runs on six hits with one error, while the Boilermakers had four hits and left four on base. Sophomore right hander Amy Harre claimed the victory for SIU, while Burke took the loss.
The series with Salukis (1-0) is now tied at two games a piece with SIU taking each of the last two, Friday's meeting and a 7-3 win on March 16, 2000 in Clearwater, Fla.
Purdue will take on the University of Central Florida Golden Knights in a 5 p.m. matchup. Friday's games were all delayed three hours due to morning rain.
R H E
Southern Illinois 200 010 0 - 3 6 1
Purdue 000 000 0 - 0 4 0