LEADING OFF

• Austin Peay closes its season-opening four-game homestand when it hosts perennial rival Southern Illinois 3 p.m., Tuesday on Joe Maynard Field at Raymond C. Hand Park.
• Head coach Roland Fanning notched his first win as a head coach, Saturday, against Illinois State. He took over an Austin Peay program that posted 19 wins in 2022 after serving as an assistant the past 15 seasons, including stints at Oklahoma State and Kentucky.
• Fanning's hire sparked a near-complete flip of the Governors' roster. Austin Peay's 2023 lineup includes 27 transfers – the most of any Division I program – with 17 transfers coming from a previous Division I roster.
• Austin Peay was picked to finish 11th in the ASUN Preseason Coaches Poll. Meanwhile, D1Baseball.com tapped the Govs to finish eighth and marked the Govs as one of its Top Turnaround Teams in a preseason podcast..

BROADCAST INFORMATION

ipTV: ESPN+ / ESPN App
    TALENT: Brian Rives (PxP)
RADIO: ESPN Clarksville (104.1 FM or via the TuneIn App)
    TALENT: Van Stokes (PxP)
LIVE STATS: PeayStats.com

SERIES HISTORY

The Series: 46 previous meetings | SIU leads, 27-19
Last Season

• April 19, 2022 | APSU def. SIU, 11-4 in Clarksville
• Feb. 22, 2022 | SIU def. APSU, 10-0 in Carbondale

Notably: Austin Peay and Southern Illinois have split the last six meetings in the series, 3-3, with the home team winning their respective home games. The Govs have outscored the Salukis by a 27-14 margin in their last three home games.

CLIMBING THE HILL

• Jacob Kush will make his Governors debut against the Salukis. The Missouri transfer made 12 appearances and one start for the Tigers last season. He picked up relief victories against Saint Louis, Illinois and Southeast Missouri last season. Kush's last start was a Feb. 21, 2022 outing against Nicholls in the fourth game of the opening weekend.
• Austin Peay used 13 pitchers, who combined for three starts and 18 relief appearances, during the opening weekend, Kush was one of three available pitchers that did not see action during the opening weekend.

FIRST HACKS

• Designated hitter Lyle Miller-Green led the Govs over the opening weekend. He leads the ASUN with a 1.267 slugging percentage and ranks among the league's top five in batting average (2nd, .600), and on-base percentage (4th, .583). His 19 total bases (2 doubles, a triple, and 2 home runs) leads all Division I batters.
• Infielder Jon Jon Gazdar notched back-to-back two-hit outings against the Redbirds. He had four RBI in Saturday's game and then scored twice in Sunday's finale.
• Utility man Matt Aribal went 4-for-4 in his debut, Saturday, scoring twice and driving in a run. He was held without a hit in Sunday's finale but walked and scored.
• Shortstop Jaden Brown has a home run in his first two games played for the Govs. He homered on Opening Day in a 1-for-2 effort then notched a home run in Sunday's finale where he was 2-for-6.
• Right fielder Garrett Martin shook off a hitless Opening Day to go 3-for-5 in Game 2 of the ISU series. He closed the set with a two-run home run, Sunday, going 1-for-4 at the plate.
• Third baseman Ambren Voitik, along with Miller-Green, had a hit in all three games of the series against the Redbirds. He capped the weekend with a 2-for-6 outing that also saw him score twice.
• Infielder Conner Gore began the season at second base but moved to first base for the final two games of the ISU series. He has reached base safely in all three games this season.
• Center fielder Clayton Gray broke through in Sunday's series finale. He hit a pair of doubles, drove in a run, and scored a run in a 2-for-6 performance.
• Catcher Trevor Conley notched his first Governors hit in Game 2 against the Redbirds, the double also was his first extra-base hit.
• Outfielder Harrison Brown saw action in all three games of the series, including a start in Game 2 of the set. He was 1-for-3 with two RBI in that start and had a pinch-hit single in the 10th inning of Sunday's finale.

NEXT UP FOR APSU

Austin Peay opens a seven-game road trip with a three-game series at Dallas Baptist, Friday-Sunday. The Govs return to DBU after opening the 2021 season against the Patriots. Dallas Baptist opened the season by sweeping a three-game set from Fordham last weekend. Patriots' Opening Day starter Braxton Bragg was named the CUSA Pitcher of the Week, Monday, after striking out 12 batters in five innings.