PEORIA, Ill. ? By winning the sixth inning Saturday night, the Southern Illinois baseball team ended its five-game losing streak, using a 2-run double by Adam Hills to down host Bradley (19-16, 3-8), 2-1, in the second game of their Missouri Valley Conference weekend series at O'Brien Field.

Bradley starter Collin Brennan threw his second career 9-inning complete game, limiting the Salukis (24-14, 5-6) to four hits, but the sophomore right-hander fell to 1-5 on the season as his teammates continue to struggle at the plate in his starts.  Bradley now has scored just five runs in Brennan's four Valley starts, suffering 3-1 losses to Wichita State and Missouri State before last weekend's 4-2 setback at Creighton.

Salukis ace Cody Adams ran his record to 9-2 with an equally impressive performance.  Adams allowed four Bradley hits in his 7.0 innings with four strikeouts.  Both starters allowed three walks.  SIU reliever Ian Reinhart allowed the game's only other hit in a scoreless eighth inning and freshman closer Bryant George worked a perfect ninth to earn his sixth save of the year.

Light-hitting second baseman Bret Maugeri, who came into the game with a .140 batting average but was insersted into the starting lineup for his defense, started SIU's sixth-inning rally with a leadoff double down the left field line.  Kevin Koski was grazed by a Brennan pitch, putting runners at first and second with no outs.  After Aaron Roberts advanced the runners with a sacrifice bunt, Hills came through with a double into the left centerfield gap for SIU's first extra-base hit of the series.  While Maugeri scored easily, shortstop Dan Brewer's relay throw to the plate appeared to be in time to nail Koski, but the ball squirted loose when catcher Ryan Eigsti tried to apply the tag after fielding the short-hop throw.

After Hills advanced to third on a wild pitch, it appeared Dean Cademartori was going to plate a third SIU run with a fly ball to right field, but Colby Luttrell caught the ball at medium depth and gunned Hills down at the plate to end the top of the sixth.

Bradley tried to rally in the bottom of the frame, beginning with Paul Rice's one-out walk.  Ryan Curry, who entered the weekend leading The Valley with 17 doubles, ripped his 18th two-bagger into the left field corner to put runners at second and third with one out.  Justin Carr followed with a sacrifice fly to center field to plate Rice and Eigsti reached on an infield single to put runners at the corners, but Adams wriggled out of the jam by getting Luttrell to fly out to left field.

After splitting the first two games of the 3-game set, the teams will meet in the series finale Sunday at 1 p.m. at O'Brien Field.