JONESBORO, Ark. (2/25/25) – Arkansas State baseball (2-6, 0-0 SBC) erased a four-run deficit late in the matchup against Southern Illinois (4-3, 0-0 MVC), but could not complete the comeback bid in a 7-5 defeat on Tuesday afternoon at Tomlinson Stadium.
 
Tyler Weimer made his first career start, surrendering three runs (all earned) on six hits over 2.2 innings pitched. Jelle van der Lelie had the longest outing of the contest for either team, taking the mound over 4.0 innings.
 
Wil French had a perfect performance at the plate, going 4-for-4 with four doubles and three RBIs. The senior established a new team record for doubles in a game, surpassing the previous mark (three) that had been matched 11 times.
 
Cason Tollett put together his third three-hit performance of the 2025 campaign, batting 3-for-5 at the plate with an RBI.
 
The Salukis jumped out to an early lead in the first inning after adding two runs on a single and groundout. Another run scored on a routine grounder in the second before Southern Illinois opened a 4-0 advantage in the fourth following multiple fielding errors.
 
In the bottom frame, Daedrick Cail led off with a double through the left side before a walk and single loaded the bases. Kaden Amundson knocked in the first run on a groundout before French closed the gap to one with a two-run double to right-center.
 
The score remained 4-3 until French batted in another run with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the sixth, but Southern Illinois broke the stalemate with a sacrifice fly of their own in the next frame.
 
Two Salukis reached scoring position with no outs before scoring on a single up the middle in the top of the eighth, making the score 7-4. French's last double of the evening gave A-State a chance to score two in the next frame, but only one reached the plate going into the final inning.
 
Both sides went down in order in the ninth, allowing Southern Illinois to escape with a two-run victory. Cole Koonce (1-0) earned the win and Blaine Harpenau claimed the save while van der Lelie (0-1) took the loss.
 
NEXT UP
A-State returns to the diamond for a midweek matchup against Southeast Missouri on Wednesday, Feb. 26 at 3:00 p.m. on Slayton Family Field at Tomlinson Stadium. Listeners can find the game on FM Newstalk 102.1, with coverage beginning 15 minutes prior to first pitch.

SOCIAL MEDIA
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