April 11, 2015 – The Cougars hosted a Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference doubleheader on Saturday in River Forest against Edgewood College of Wisconsin. It was a sunny and breezy day as the first game of the afternoon saw CUC rout the opposition 8-1. The second game saw the Cougars top the Eagles 6-1 and extend their current winning streak to six games.
 
CUC head coach Sarah O'Malley-Fisher said, "The hard work the team has put in is coming to fruition, and that makes this a fun team to coach. Now we need to concentrate on our hitting approach and make sure we continue to do the little things that have brought us this success."
 
In game one, Meghan Johnson (Glendale Heights, IL/Glenbard West) pitched a complete one-run game with five strikeouts and no walks. While the Cougars had two hits in the second, no runs were scored until Edgewood managed a run in the top of the fourth. In the bottom of the inning, however, Allie Bochat (Crystal Lake, IL/Crystal Lake South), Jenni Jensen (Chicago, IL/Luther North), and Michele Alexander (Tinley Park, IL/Andrew) reached to load the bases with no outs. Alicia Salata (Bartlett, IL/H.S.) reached on a fielder's choice as Bochat was out at home. But with one out, Adriana Cura (Romeoville, IL/Plainfield South) came to bat. The freshman catcher blasted a grand slam over the leftfield fence for her first career home run to give the Cougars a lead they would not relinquish.
 
Johnson continued to baffle Eagle batters the rest of the game and got additional run support in the fifth after a sparkling defensive play by rightfielder Allison Kruk (Elgin, IL/St. Edward) ended the top of the inning by catching a fly ball and then gunning out the runner at home plate with a strong and accurate throw.
 
Fittingly, Kruk led off the bottom of the inning with a double and moved to third on Johnson's single. Bochat drove in Kruk with an infield grounder, and then Jensen singled in Johnson. Salata singled home Jensen, and Cura and Emmy Vowell (Peotone, IL/H.S.) then reached to load the bases with two outs. After a pitching change, Stefanie D'Anna (LaGrange Park, IL/Lyons Township) was walked to bring in the final run of the game that finished 8-1 CUC.
 
In game two, freshman Courtney Pepper (South Bend, IN/Penn) pitched a complete game win, allowing one run on two hits. The Cougars again had two hits in the bottom of the second but did not score a run. In the top of the third, the Eagles took a 1-0 lead, but CUC took the lead for good in the bottom of the fourth. Alexander, Salata, and Cura all singled to load the bases with no outs. D'Anna doubled in two runs. A couple batters later, Cura made it home on a wild pitch for a 3-1 lead. In the bottom of the sixth, D'Anna singled in Cura to start off a three-run rally. Johnson singled in D'Anna, and Jensen singled in the third run of the inning to give the Cougars the final 6-1 margin.
 
The Cougars travel to Rockford University on Sunday for games at noon and 2 p.m.