SIU's Grace named MVC Pitcher of Week

ST. LOUIS - Southern Illinois freshman pitcher Sam Grace was named the Missouri Valley Conference Pitcher of the Week, the league announced Monday. Grace pitched eight shutout innings of two-hit baseball for the Salukis out of the bullpen last week. Grace is the first SIU freshman on record (since 2003) to earn MVC Pitcher of the Week.

Grace, a St. Charles, Mo., native, pitched eight innings of two-hit shutout baseball out of the bullpen for the Salukis in their 3-1 week. Grace struck out seven and did not issue a walk, limiting opponents to just two singles and an .077 batting average on the week. In his most impressive outing of his young career, Grace pitched six innings of one-hit shutout baseball against Morehead State, who entered the weekend among the nation's top-12 offenses in batting average and scoring.

Grace is SIU's first MVC Pitcher of the Week in 2019. Will LaRue was named MVC Player of the Week earlier this season. Southern Illinois pitcher have earned the conference's Pitcher of the Week award seven times since the start of the 2017 season.