River Forest, Ill. — The Concordia University Chicago baseball team welcomed the Muskies of Lakeland University to the Thunderdome on Saturday for a conference doubleheader. The Cougars were unable to push a win across on the afternoon, falling 11-1 in game one and 4-0 in 10 innings in game two.
Game One
Junior Chris Villafuerte (Oak Lawn, Ill.) took the ball in game one for his first start in a CUC uniform. He allowed six earned over five innings of work with three strikeouts and a walk.
Both teams were kept off the board for three innings before the Muskies broke through with a two-run fourth. This ignited their offense, as they'd score in each of the next three innings to jump out to a 10-0 lead heading to the bottom of the seventh.
The Cougars put together their biggest scoring threat in the seventh. Needing a run to keep the game alive, sophomore Elijah Hickman (Rensselaer, Ind.) reached base on a hit by pitch to start things off. He then displayed some speed by stealing second and putting himself in scoring position.
After fifth year Brody Mariotti (Yorktown, Ind.) was intentionally walked, both he and Hickman were able to advance on a wild pitch. Junior Garry Maynard (Oswego, Ill.) then delivered the first run of the day for the Cougars with an RBI groundout to secure at least one more at bat.
Lakeland regained their 10-run advantage on the top of the eighth, however, and the Cougars were unable to match in the bottom half, falling 11-1 in eight innings.
Game Two
Game two was an old-fashioned pitchers' duel, with neither team scoring a run in the first nine innings of action.
Sophomore Jack Rector (Peoria, Ariz.) started the game on the bump for the Cougars and was outstanding. He struck out five and allowed just two hits over five shutout innings.
He was relieved by fellow sophomore Vincent Sartori (Crest Hill, Ill.) who picked up right where Rector left off, surrendering only one hit over four scoreless innings of work. Sartori struck out three batters and issued just one walk.
Much like game one, the Cougars struggled to get much going offensively. Senior Howie Hatton (North Riverside, Ill.) had two hits in the leadoff spot, including the first at bat of the game, but the team added only three more hits outside of that.
After neither team managed to score through nine innings, the Muskies suddenly exploded for four in the top half of the 10th, putting them in the driver's seat for the doubleheader sweep.
Hickman led off the CUC half of the 10th with a double, his fourth time reaching base in game two. He advanced to third on a groundout two batters later, but was eventually stranded there as the final out of the game was recorded.
The Cougars will hit the road tomorrow for a doubleheader with Wisconsin Lutheran College. The games will be played in Mequon, Wis., on the campus of Concordia University Wisconsin. First pitch for game one is scheduled for noon, with game two following a half hour following the conclusion.
Coverage for all of Sunday's action can be found at cucougars.com/coverage.
