May 4, 2013 - For the second consecutive season, a Northern Athletics Conference regular-season championship banner for baseball will hang in Concordia-Chicago's Geiseman Gymnasium. The Cougars claimed the title as well as the number one seed for next weekend's conference tournament with today's 3-2 and 13-3 sweep of the Milwaukee School of Engineering.

Today's wins put Concordia at 18-4 in conference play and gave them undisputed possession of the title when Aurora University lost game one of its doubleheader against Dominican University. The wins also gave the Cougars their sixth straight season of 30 or more wins. The game two win was the 99th of Adam Smith's three-year career, and he and the team will go for number 100 on Monday night when the Cougars play at Illinois Wesleyan University.

In today's action, MSOE came close in game one to playing the role of spoiler to perfection. The visiting Raiders received an impressive complete-game performance from Adam Vlaj who held the Cougars to three runs (two earned) on seven hits. But the Cougars' pitching trio of Bobby Beelen (Wheeling, IL/H.S.), Paul Kukulka (Lake Villa, IL/Lakes Community) and Steve Cox (Villa Park, IL/Willowbrook) came through in key situations to help the team perservere.

Milwaukee Engineering had the first legitimate scoring chance in game one. With two on and two out, Tyler Magyar lined a single to right. Joe Moran (Chicago, IL/Notre Dame) charged the ball and fired a one-out throw to catcher Will Randerson (Combined Locks, WI/Kimberly) who applied the tag in time for the out.

The starting pitchers continued to match zeroes until the bottom of the fifth. Steve Zubrzycki (McHenry. IL/Marian Central Catholic) led off and reached base on a throwing error by the shortstop. Bunts by Moran and Shawn Miller (Pleasant Prairie, WI/Tremper) moved Zubrzycki to third with two out and brought Thomas Gier (Fox Lake, IL/Grant Community) to the plate. At .357, Gier's average with men in scoring position has been among the team's best, and the junior came through again as he lined an 0-1 pitch into leftfield for the initial run of the game.

The Raiders evened the score in the sixth. Casey Magyar led off with a double and scored on Jake Roberts' single up the middle. However, Beelen retired the next three batters to keep the game knotted.

The score remained 1-1 until the last of the eighth after Miller threw out a second MSOE runner at the plate. With one out, singles by Kyle Huber (Chicago, IL/Lane Tech) and Robert Weis (Oak Creek, WI/H.S.) put runners on first and third. Randerson then lifted a fly ball to leftfield in foul territory. The fielder made a catch, but pinch-runner B.J. Weisflog (Grafton, WI/H.S.) tagged up and sprinted for home. Weisflog slid in under the tag with the go-ahead run. Moments later, Zubrzycki added an insurance run when his line drive landed just inside the leftfield line and rolled to the fence for a double scoring Weis.

Weis' final run would turn out to be the winning run as MSOE rallied in the ninth. Wes Stasik reached with one out on catcher's interference. Later, Casey Magyar's single scored Stasik and sent the tying run to second base. However, Cox wrapped up his tenth save as he retired Roberts on a pop-up to third base.

Kukulka earned the win and improved to 4-0 with his two innings of work. Cox notched his tenth save of the season despite being touched for the unearned run, the first run scored against Cox in 14 innings this season.

The Cougars had an easier time in the nightcap. Doubles by Moran and Gier produced a first-inning run, and a two-out single by Huber drove in Gier for a 2-0 lead. Concordia added to the lead in the second as an error and sacrifice fly by Miller pushed across two more runs for a 4-0 lead.

Milwaukee Engineering got on the board on Max Poeske's leadoff homer in the third. The Raiders then touched starter Ryan Thorsen (Lake Villa, IL/Grant Community) for two more in the fourth, one of them unearned on a pair of errors. However, a double play bailed the Cougars out of further trouble, still in the lead at 4-3.

Concordia answered swiftly as they loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning. Gier drew a walk to force in a run and chase starter Sam Matthies from the mound. Derek Binninger (Pleasant Prairie, WI/Tremper) greeted the new reliever with a single to rightfield, driving in two runs to up the lead to 7-3.

Kurt Kempema (Schaumburg, IL/H.S.) came in to pitch the fifth and sixth innings and keep the visitors at bay. Concordia then hit the visitors for a six-spot in the sixth inning. Moran's leadoff triple got the Cougars off and running, and Dan LoDolce's (Northlake, IL/Walther Lutheran) two-run double provided a big highlight of the inning.

Senior J.P. Kulick (Buffalo Grove, IL/H.S.) closed out the game in the seventh, retiring the side in order. He finished the game with a flourish, getting Tyler Magyar swinging at a third strike to wrap up the title-clinching victory.

The final two home games for the Cougars included a recognition of the seniors afterwards. The seniors honored included Jon Atkins (Kenosha, WI/Bradford), Tony Barreto (Cicero, IL/Nazareth Academy), Nick Contorno (Park Ridge, IL/Maine South), Beelen, Kulick, Miller, Moran, Thorsen and Weis.