Baseball 4/12/2015 1:00:00 AM Jim Egan, Sports Information Director

Cougars Pound Eagles, Move into Tie for First Place

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 April 11, 2015 - The current baseball season has been one of maddening inconsistencies thus far for the Concordia University Chicago Cougars. However, this afternoon's doubleheader in Verona, WI saw the Cougar bats enjoy their biggest production of the year as they rapped out a total of 32 hits in defeating host Edgewood College by scores of 17-6 and 11-1. The wins moved the Cougars (14-12) to a 6-2 record in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference and into a first-place tie with Benedictine University.

The last time that the Cougars and Eagles squared off was last May in the NACC tournament when CUC edged Edgewood by a 2-1 score. Any Thoughts of a repeat low-scoring contest fell by the wayside in the very first inning of game one. Brent Spohr's (Ingleside, IL/Grant Community) grounder to short drove in the Cougars' first run . They later added an RBI single by Mitch Wilson (Oswego, IL/H.S.) and a two-run single by Rich Santarelli (Homer Glen, IL/Chicago Christian) to take a 4-0 lead.

Edgewood would score two in the first to make it a 4-2 game, but CUC would never allow the hosts to overtake them. Run-scoring doubles by Carlos Olavarria (Rosemont, IL/East Leyden) and Wilson, along with an RBI single by Doug Matthews (Crest Hill, IL/Lockport Township),extended the lead out to 7-2 after only 1 1/2 innings.

The Eagles made another run as they put four more runs on the board. CUC starter C.J. Selner (Milwaukee, IL/Milwaukee Lutheran) wwas forced to leave the game after facing just four batters in the inning, but freshman Adam Schmitt (Bartonville, IL/Limestone) rode to the Cougars' rescue. The righthander shut down the hosts completely over his six innings pitched, slloeing just four hits and one walk while fanning four.

With Schmitt putting the Eagles on lockdown, the Cougars kept rolling and put this game away by the end of seven innings. A two-run double by Joe Silva (Arlington Heights, IL/Hersey) highlighted a five-run third inning. Silva added another RBI hit in the fourth as did Olavarria and Spohr, and Steve Zubrzycki (McHenry, IL/Marian Central) doubled home a run as the Cougars won game one going away.

Game two belonged to Cody Caballero (Lemont, IL/H.S.) as the lefty improved to 4-1 on the season with a tidy complete-game (eight inning) three-hitter. The sophomore struck out four and walked two while throwing an economical 100 pitches.

The Cougars gave Caballero the only runs he needed in the second when Wilson walked and Matthews doubled. A wild pitch scored Wilson, and Matthews followed right behind as a throw from the catcher got away. CUC added a two-out run in the third as Silva singled, advanced on a wild pitch and scored on Olavarria's base hit up the middle for a 3-0 lead.

There would be no more scoring until the sixth. Silva's double sparked a three-run rally with the freshman scoring on Wilson's single. Matthews later squeezed home a run, and Santarelli's single made it a 6-0 lead for the visitors.

Edgewood scored its lone ruu in the bottom of the sixth, but Concordia-Chicago roared right back. Olavarria singled home a pair of runs, and Spohr and Wilson also knocked in runs to put the Cougars in double digits for runs scored once again. Olavarria then gave CUC their 10-run lead in the eighth with his third homer of 2015, and Caballero closed out the Eagles in the bottom of the inning to put the Cougars on the bus ride back to Chicago.

The Cougars will face Wisconsin Lutheran College in a home doubleheader on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

#17 Cody Caballero: P; 6' 1"; Sophomore; L-L

#13 Doug Matthews: 3B/OF; 5' 11"; Sophomore; R-R

#25 Carlos Olavarria: OF; 5' 9"; Senior; R-R

#3 Rich Santarelli: 2B; 6' 1"; Senior; R-R

#19 C.J. Selner: P; 6' 2"; Senior; L-L

#12 Brent Spohr: 1B; 6' 1"; Sophomore; R-R

#1 Steve Zubrzycki: 3B; 5' 10"; Senior; R-R

#38 Adam Schmitt: P; 6' 2"; Freshman; L-R

#34 Joe Silva: OF; 6' 0"; Freshman; L-R

#23 Mitch Wilson: IF/OF; 5' 10"; Freshman; L-R

Players Mentioned

#17 Cody Caballero
: 6' 1"; Sophomore; L-L
: P

#13 Doug Matthews
: 5' 11"; Sophomore; R-R
: 3B/OF

#25 Carlos Olavarria
: 5' 9"; Senior; R-R
: OF

#3 Rich Santarelli
: 6' 1"; Senior; R-R
: 2B

#19 C.J. Selner
: 6' 2"; Senior; L-L
: P

#12 Brent Spohr
: 6' 1"; Sophomore; R-R
: 1B

#1 Steve Zubrzycki
: 5' 10"; Senior; R-R
: 3B

#38 Adam Schmitt
: 6' 2"; Freshman; L-R
: P

#34 Joe Silva
: 6' 0"; Freshman; L-R
: OF

#23 Mitch Wilson
: 5' 10"; Freshman; L-R
: IF/OF