Redhawks tumble in 10

~ The Salukis swept the two-game season series.

The Southeast Missouri State baseball team suffered a disheartening home loss Tuesday.

Southeast was one out away from a victory when Southern Illinois-Carbondale's Chris Murphy homered in the top of the ninth inning to tie the contest 2-2.

The Salukis scored twice in the 10th to beat the Redhawks 4-2. SIU swept the season series from Southeast after the Salukis won 7-0 last Tuesday in Carbondale, Ill.

"It's a tough one to lose," said Southeast coach Mark Hogan, whose squad fell to 19-14 after suffering its fourth loss in its past five games.

But there was a silver lining for Southeast.

Sophomore Corey Harness, who has seen limited action over the past two seasons, pitched by far the best game of his college career.

Harness, who had not worked more than 3 2/3 innings in any contest, fired off 5 2/3 scoreless frames in his fourth Southeast start, including two this year.

"I came out here with the intention to go as long as possible and give us a chance to win," Harness said.

Harness entered the game 0-1 with a 7.45 ERA in 9 2/3 innings. He went 0-2 with a 12.27 ERA in 7 1/3 innings as a redshirt freshman last year.

Harness was solid against SIU last week, allowing four hits and two earned runs in 3 2/3 innings in his first start of the season.

The Texas native bettered that by a wide margin Tuesday as he gave up four hits and four walks while striking out three. He also hit a batter.

"It just feels good to pitch good," said Harness, who is from the Houston suburb of Spring, Texas.

Asked what pitches were working, Harness said: "Fastball, changeup, breaking ball when I needed it. I was mainly just throwing strikes."

Hogan was encouraged by Harness' outing as Southeast continues to search for pitching depth beyond its regular Ohio Valley Conference rotation.

"Corey did a great job," Hogan said. "He deserved a better fate at the end, but you have to finish it out."

Harness was ever so close to his first collegiate victory when Murphy's dramatic, two-out homer in the ninth tied things.

"It would have been nice, but that's just the way the game goes," Harness said. "You win some and you lose some."

Southeast scored single runs in each of the first two innings but did not dent the scoreboard again.

It didn't look like the Redhawks would need any more offense when junior catcher Jim Klocke closed in on what would have been his eighth save during his first season as a college pitcher.

Klocke, who retired the final two batters in the eighth inning after Mark Kelly homered off senior Ryan Poole to make it 2-1, set down the first two Salukis in the ninth.

But Murphy crushed a 1-1 pitch well over the right-center field wall.

Although Harness would not have gotten the win, Southeast had a golden opportunity to finish off SIU (14-20) in the bottom of the ninth.

Southeast loaded the bases with one out, but Klocke -- among the Redhawks' most reliable hitters -- bounced into a double play.

"That was our shot where we needed to get it done," Hogan said.

SIU took advantage of the reprieve by scoring twice in the top of the 10th despite getting just one hit, an RBI single by Tony Lepore that broke the deadlock.

Klocke (2-2) walked three in the frame -- one intentionally -- and balked in the second run.

Southeast had another strong chance in its half of the 10th, putting runners on second and third with one out.

But SIU closer Kent George struck out freshman shortstop Kenton Parmley and got junior center fielder Nick Harris on a ground ball to short for his 20th career save, which broke the school record.

Klocke, Harris, senior second baseman Tony Spencer and senior first baseman Matt Wagner all had two hits.

SIU finished with 11 hits, three by Kelly.

Southeast continues nonconference play this weekend with a four-game home series against future OVC member Southern Illinois-Edwardsville. The first contest is at 6 p.m. Friday.