Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

Concordia University Chicago softball (2-11-1) hit the road on Tuesday to head up to Wisconsin for a doubleheader with Lakeland College (1-10-1). 

The Cougars dropped game one by a final score of 9-5, before going toe-to-toe in a thrilling 14-14 tie in the night cap. 

Game One
The Cougars came out hot in game one, with junior Sydney Paulauskis-Lauher (Chatham, Ill.) lacing the third single of the first inning to score sophomore Becky Pieroni (Montgomery, Ill.) and make it a 1-0 game. 

The momentum carried into the next inning, with the team hanging a three-spot thanks to RBI hits from sophomore Hailey Howard (Machesney, Ill.) and senior Nia DeGeorge (Omaha, Neb.) to make it 4-0 CUC. 

After surrendering six runs between the third and fifth innings, the Cougars threatened to tie the game in the top half of the sixth but came up a run short. Lakeland answered with three insurance runs in the bottom half, sealing their game one win. 

Junior Holly Bathje (Davis Junction, Ill.) went the distance (six innings), allowing five earned on nine hits while striking out one. It is her fifth time throwing at least six innings this season, and her third consecutive complete game. 

DeGeorge was 2-4 in game one, continuing her performance as the team's leading hitter. Extra base hits were provided by Howard and senior Isabel Ortiz (Homer Glen, Ill.), who both smacked their first doubles of the year. 

Game Two
The night cap featured a lot more offense than the first contest, especially for the Cougars. The team scored in each of the first six innings, including a massive eight-run third inning. 

Four different Cougars had RBIs in the third, including a pair of two-run triples from Pieroni and freshman Gina Westphal (Elmhurst, Ill.). It was the second triple of the inning for Westphal, who was a perfect 4-4 with a walk on the day. 

The other RBIs were provided by Paulauskis-Lauher and senior Sydney Sterrett (Lafayette, Ind.). All in all, 12 batters came to the plate in the inning. 

A nine-run outburst from Lakeland in the fourth spearheaded a Muskie comeback, as they held the lead heading into the sixth. A clutch RBI hit from DeGeorge tied the game at 14, where it would end due to the dark. 

In addition to the third inning triples, the Cougars got extra base hits from Howard and freshman Annabella Archuletta (Pueblo, Colo.), who had a pair of doubles in a game for the second time this season. 

The Cougars will be right back in action tomorrow when they head back up north to take on Wisconsin Lutheran College in a doubleheader. Game one is currently set to begin at 3 p.m., with coverage available on the WLC website.