RIVER FOREST, ILL. — Concordia University Chicago (CUC) athletics are in the heat of spring sports season and fighting off the weather left and right. Check out and see what the Cougars have been up to this week.

Baseball

The Cougars started off on the road last week as they traveled to Wheaton College and fell 7-1. Elijah Hickman (Rensselaer, Ind.) led the offense for the Cougars as he went 2-for-2 and picked up a season-high two hits. Garry Maynard (Oswego, Ill.) grabbed the lone RBI of the game as he drove in on his only hit of the night.

Hosting their home opener weekend against St. Norbert College resulted in an Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) sweep, 13-6 and 15-5. Michael Kasik (Chandler, Ariz.) grabbed two grand slams on the day while going 3-for-4 in game one. Tyler Dorsch (Phoenix, Ariz.) also had a big day at the plate, going 7-for-10 with two RBIs. On the mound for the Cougars, Tyler Pritchard (Manhattan, Ill.) grabbed his first win while pitching four innings with three strikeouts. Aidan Teahan (Park Ridge, Ill.) grabbed the win for game two with six complete innings and securing five strikeouts.

Finally on Sunday, the Cougars hosted the Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) where they dropped two to the Raiders. Dorsch led the offense in game one, going 3-for-4 with two RBIs and his first home run of the season. Game two offense was led by Tyler Krater (Phoenix, Ariz.) and Jaime Sandoval (Oak Lawn, Ill.), who both went 2-for-3. Garry Maynard (Oswego, Ill.) also grabbed himself a second inning grand slam to pump up the Cougars.

They will be taking most of this week off before heading to Lakeland University on Saturday for a 12 and 3 p.m. double header.

Women's Lacrosse

Women's Lacrosse has been host to a lot of teams this week, first being against University of Wisconsin - La Crosse last Wednesday. They dropped this game with a score of 15-4. Kelli Pietrowski (Wheeling, Ill.), Jessica Parker (Lake in the Hills, Ill.), Rylee Orenstein (Walnut Creek, Calif.), and Brynn Beetow (Buffalo, N.Y.). Ryan McGee (Chicago, Ill.) also had 14 saves in this game.

Starting NACC play on Saturday, the Cougars picked up their first conference win over Marian University 9-8. Pietrowski grabbed herself her fifth hat trick of the season with three goals. Orenstein and Parker both also scored two goals in the game. The Cougars will be hosting again this week as Beloit College comes to River Forest on Wednesday for a 2 p.m. matchup.

Men's Volleyball

The Cougar men's volleyball team had an electric week in the NACC as they took down the number one team in the conference, Benedictine University. Wednesday night, the Cougars defeated the Eagles with a score of 3-1 in an electric, energy-filled Geiseman. Luke Vozenilek (Westmont, Ill.) led the way for the Cougar offense with 19 kills, four total blocks, and one service ace. Colby Campbell (Brookfield, Ill.) had a stellar night at the net with seven total blocks. This also marks the first time in school history that the Cougars have defeated the Eagles.

Heading to Aurora on Saturday, the Cougars dropped two games against Aurora University and University of California - Santa Cruz, 3-1 and 3-0, respectively. In game one against the Spartans, Tyler Holubek (New Lenox, Ill.) led the way with 16 kills. Blake Rosen (Aldie, Va.) had some great numbers this game as he had 14 digs. In game two against the Banana Slugs, Van Gaetto (Darien, Ill.) had the offensive energy with five kills. Elijah Mosher (Clayton, Ohio) also picked up a career-high five service aces.

The Cougars have their last week of conference play this week as they host MSOE on Tuesday at 7 p.m. and Edgewood College on Thursday at 7 p.m. If the Cougars make it into the NACC Conference Tournament, that will begin next Tuesday, April 11th.

Softball

To start off on a great note last week, Nikita Robbins (Lafayette, Ind.) secured NACC Position Player of the Week after a stellar outing. Robbins had a complete 7-for-7 against Wheaton College with three RBIs and three runs scored.

After a couple of delays due to weather, softball was back in River Forest for their home opener on Thursday. Carthage College came to Cougar Field and they split with the Cougars 5-3 and 13-4. Becky Pieroni (Montgomery, Ill.) and Hailey Howard (Machesney Park, Ill.) led the offense in the game one win, both going 2-for-4. Howard picked up two RBIs and a walk off home run to secure the win for the Cougars. Ashley Shroll (Tampa, Fla.) also dominated in the circle while pitching nine innings and picking up three strikeouts. In game two, Howard continued to command the offense going 2-for-3 with two RBIs and her second home run of the day. 

Hosting the NACC opener on Saturday, the Cougars took on St.Norbert College. They won game one with a score of 20-14 and game two was suspended due to light at 13-13 in the seventh. In game one, Haley Gulsby (Englewood, Fla.) and Jessica Geng (Phoenix, Ariz.) both picked up their first career home runs, Geng's being a grand slam. Howard went 4-for-5 with two RBIs in this game and Arissa Santos (Moreno Valley, Calif.) went 2-for-3 with 2 RBIs and a double. In game two, Gulsby had her second home run of the day and Pieroni had a perfect 4-for-4.

Finally on Sunday, the Cougars traveled to MSOE for double header action where they fell in both, 8-1 and 5-4. Pieroni picked up the lone hit of the game and scored Gina Westphal (Elmhurst, Ill.). Santos and Melisa Hadzic (Westchester, Ill.) both went 2-for-3 in game two and picked up their first career home runs. Pieroni also picked up a home run of her own. Kallie Tierney (Corona, Calif.) also had a career-high 5.2 innings pitched and allocated one strikeout. 

Hosting again on Wednesday, the Cougars are taking on a rescheduled double header against North Park University at 3 and 5 p.m.

Track and Field

Outdoor season has arrived for the Cougar track and field team as they traveled to Carroll University for the Private College Championships.

On the women's side, there were multiple Cougars making waves to start the season. Simone Wilson (Minneapolis, MN) broke the 800-meter school record and placed herself at the top of the NACC standings with a 2:17. Madeline Bobinski (Des Plaines, Ill.) placed first in the javelin throw with a distance of 39.98 meters, which also places her first in the NACC. Eve Shelton (St. Louis, Mo.) placed second in the 400-meter and third in the 200-meter with two new personal records. In the triple jump, Zahra Sammour (Berwyn, IL) placed second and then fifth overall in the long jump. Finally, Jamie Seibert (Arlington Heights, Ill.) placed third in the high jump.

On the men's side,  Gustavo Alvarez (Chicago, IL) had the highest marks of the day. In the pole vault, he hit a mark of 4.35 meters to finish in third place. He also placed eighth in the javelin throw with a distance of 44.19 meters. Avery Jones (Hazelwood, Mo.) also placed high with a fifth place finish in the high jump.

The Cougars take this next weekend off, but continue action next Saturday, April 15th. They travel to Wisconsin Lutheran College for the Warrior Invitational.

Men's Lacrosse

Finishing off their long string of road games, the Cougars traveled to Carroll University where they narrowly fell 8-3. Picking up the three lone goals on the day were Josef Fors (Farmington, Minn.), Justin Headley (Baltimore, Md.), and Jarred Tabor (Crystal Lake, Ill.). Peter Borkowski (St. Louis, Mo.) had a strong day in the net with 13 saves. 

Opening up NACC play at home on Saturday, the Cougars fell to the Marian University Sabres. Tabor, Headley, Sean Dooley (Ocala, Fla.), and Aidan Vizi (Bethel, Ct.) picked up the lone goals of the day. Borkowski also picked up 15 saves in the net. The Cougars go back out on the road this week as they head to Beloit College on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. game.

Men's Tennis

Celebrating their senior day on Saturday, the men's tennis team traveled to a neutral site to take on MSOE. The Cougar seniors included Kevin Januska (Bolingbrook, Ill.), Scott Engler (New Palestine, Ind.), and Caleb Gustafson (Merrill, Wis.). Against the Raiders, the Cougars fell with a score of 9-0. Januska and Engler fought in their doubles match, but ultimately fell 8-4. 

Moving on to Sunday, the Cougars grabbed their first win of the season over Marian University 6-3. Joshua Gustafson (Merrill, Wis.) and Januska won their first doubles match of the day with a score of 8-0. Nathan Stringer (Milwaukee, Wis.) won his first match in the maroon and gold 6-2 and 6-1. Reynaldo Leal (Weslaco, Texas) also grabbed his first career singles win 6-3 and 7-6 following a 9-7 tiebreaker. C. Gustafson, Diego Loveshe (Franklin Park, Ill.), and J. Gustafson also won their singles matches. 

The Cougars take a little bit of a break before taking on Edgewood College on Saturday, April 15th.