VERONA, WIS. – The Concordia University Chicago baseball team broke through their dry spell with a split against conference opponent Edgewood College, taking game one and falling in game two.
GAME ONE: 14-7 W
INSIDE THE BOX
- Elijah Hickman (Rensselaer, Ind.) led the offense going a perfect 4-4 at the plate with a two run homerun and three total RBIs.
- Julio Cajigas (Romeoville, Ill.) followed behind going 3-4 at the plate with one RBI while crossing the plate three times.
- Dylan Ferraro (Windor, Colo.) dominated on the mound for the Cougars pitching 4.1 innings while only allowing one run and picking up a career high four strikeouts.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Cougars struck first with a leadoff single from Hickman to right field. A double from Cajigas moved Hickman 90 feet from the plate where a single from Brandon Mahler (Vernon Hills, Ill.) would score both runners and put the Cougars up 2-0.
- Three outs in four batters in the bottom of the first would hand things back over to the Cougars who would take advantage of the hot bats that started in inning one. A leadoff double from Michael Kasik (Chandler, Ariz.) would put one runner on base for Hickman to send a long ball rocket over the right field wall to tack on two more runs and give the Cougars the 4-0 lead.
- With the Cougars picking up three quick outps, including one strikeout from Wyatt McLaughlin (Cave Creek, Ariz.), the bats would be back in the hands of the Cougars.
- A leadoff single from Cajigas followed by a single from Mahler would put two runners on base. With a throwing error helping the Cougars, Cajigas would score and put the Cougars up 5-0. A single to right field from Jake Mahler (Vernon Hills, Ill.) followed by a single from Caleb Anderson (Plainfield, Ill.) would score one more and make this a 6-0 game in favor of the Cougars.
- With difficulty on the mound, the Cougars would give up seven walks and score six runners for the Eagles and even the game up.
- Needing to bounce back after a harsh defensive inning, a leadoff single from Hickman would be the fruitful start CUC needed. After Hickman was caught stealing and a blank slate on the bases for the Cougars, a double from Dorsch and a hit by pitch for Cajigas would put two on. With the double steal attempt, an error from the Eagles would allow room for Dorsch to score and leave Cajigas 90 feet away. A single from Tyler Krater (Phoenix, Ariz.) would send Cajigas home and close the inning with the Cougars up 8-6.
- With Ferraro working on the mound, three outs in three batters would come at the hands of the pitcher as Ferraro successfully threw to Kasik at first for the perfect pickoff.
- With a quiet fifth inning across the board, a leadoff bunt from Hickman would start the inning off on a high note while hits from Dorsch and Cajigas would load thigns up. With double play to pull two runners off the bags, a homerun from Krater would put the Cougars up 11-6 heading into the bottom of the sixth.
- The top of the seventh would put the Cougars over the top with a leadoff hit from Kasik paired with a walk from Anderson to put two on base. With the help of an Eagle error, Kasik would score to put the Cougars up 12-7. With a sacrifice fly from Hickman and another Eagle error, the Cougars would tack on two more and put the Cougars up 14-7 headed to the bottom of the seventh.
- With Ferraro still working on the mound, a game ending strikeout would give the Cougars the win in game one.
HIGHLIGHTS
The Cougars face a quick turnaround as they host Willamette University tomorrow, April 14
th, for one game set for 11:00 am. Coverage can be found at cucougars.com/coverage.
