NORMAL, Ill. – Missouri State's 2019 season came to a close with a 10-9 setback against Southern Illinois Thursday afternoon on day three of the MVC Baseball Championship at Duffy Bass Field. SIU scored five runs in the first two innings, then tallied four more in the last two frames to withstand the Bears' late comeback bid.

Ian Walters' three-run home run in the first inning set the tone for the game, as SIU used a trio of extra-base hits and three walks to build a 4-0 lead in the opening frame. Walters, who finished the day 4-for-6, added a single in the second before scoring on Aiden McMahan's base hit to stretch the SIU lead to five runs.

SIU starter Blake Begner controlled the Bears' offense through the sixth, permitting just a second-inning run after Drew Millas delivered the first of his four hits with a one-out double. Begner allowed just one more MSU hit until the sixth, when Joey Polak and Millas belted back-to-back homers to trim the Saluki lead to 5-3. After the Salukis pushed a run home in the seventh, the Bears trimmed the margin to a single run in the home half, scoring twice on a two-out throwing error.

Once again, the Salukis (26-28) had a response, using another long ball—this one a two-run shot by Alex Lyon—and a two-out RBI single from Grey Epps to extend their lead back to four runs. The third SIU homer of the game—a leadoff solo blast by Nikola Vasic in the ninth—would prove to be the critical insurance run that closer Trey McDaniel would need to finish off the victory.

An error on John Privitera's grounder to second opened the door for the Bears in the bottom half of the ninth, before back-to-back doubles by Jack Duffy and Brooks Zimmerman plated two MSU runs. Dakota Kotowski made it a one-run game moments later with a mammoth two-run homer to left-center.

Millas followed with his fourth hit of the day to put the potential tying run on base. But McDaniel fanned Ben Whetstone for the second out, then got Mason Hull to look at a called third strike for the clinching punchout.

Begner earned the victory after surrendering just two earned runs (four total) on five hits in his 6 2/3 innings.

Bears senior lefty Jake Lochner took the loss after allowing the first five SIU runs on eight hits over 3.0 innings. Freshman right-hander Nick Schmidt followed with 1 2/3 innings of two hit relief to keep the Bears within range of the Salukis.

Millas matched a career high with his four hits in five at-bats, and Duffy added a 2-for-5 performance as well.

With the loss, Missouri State concluded its season with a 20-36 overall record, while Southern Illinois advances to a Friday contest against the loser of tonight's Indiana State-Illinois State match-up.