FOND DU LAC, WIS. - The Concordia University Chicago (CUC) baseball team picked up another conference sweep with two wins over the Marian University Sabres. The Cougars extended their record to 18-11 overall and 9-5 in Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) play, pushing them to second in the NACC standings.
GAME ONE: 4-2 W
INSIDE THE BOX
- Yashion Boswell (Lynwood, Ill.) led at the plate going three-for-four as the only Cougar to pick up multiple hits in the game while picking up one RBI.
- Tyler Krater (Phoenix, Ariz.) went one-for-four at the plate while driving in a team-high two RBIs.
- Dylan Scott (Bartlett, Ill.) went seven innings ont he mount, only allowing two runs with five strikeouts in his 26 batters faced.
- Benjamin Tietyen (Oak Creek, Wis.) and Bryce Jones (Ottowa, Ill.) each pitched one inning of relief to close the game.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Cougars struck first in the top of the second with a two-out rally after Elijah Hickman (Rensselaer, Ind.) found his way one base off an error. With a stolen base from Hickman putting him in scoring position, a double from Boswell would drive him in and put the Cougars up 1-0.
- A three up, three down inning for the Cougar defense would put the bats right back to work, but would be unable to extend their lead. The Sabres would level the game with a leadoff home run in the bottom of the third before three consecutive outs would get the Cougars out of the inning.
- The Sabres would go on to take the 2-1 lead int he bottom of the fourth after another solo homer and leave the Cougars trailing for the first time of the day. The Cougars would struggle to combat this momentum until the top of the sixth, where Jake Mahler (Vernon Hills, Ill.) would put up a one-out double before Krater would send a long ball over the fence and take the 3-2 lead right back.
- The top of the ninth would get underway with a single from Boswell to put one on base while a walk for Cam Buckley (New Lenox, Ill.) would put runners on first and second. A wild pitch would move them to second and third Connor Jerkatis (New Lenox, Ill.) to step to the plate for the first time of the day. A sacrifice fly to centerfield would allow Boswell to score and give the Cougars their insurance run heading into the top of the ninth.
- An effective bottom of the ninth from Jones would close the game with the 4-2 victory for CUC.
HIGHLIGHTS
GAME TWO: 14-7 W
INSIDE THE BOX
- Tyler Dorsch (Phoenix, Ariz.) led in game two going two-for-six at the plate with four RBIs and two runs.
- Michael Kasik (Chandler, Ariz.) did some damage going two-for-five at the plate with three runs of his own.
- Mahler was the only other Cougar to collect multiple hits in the game, going two-for-three with two runs.
- Boswell and Buckley each collected three RBIs on one hit with one run of their own.
- Dom Owens (Frankfort, Ill.) picked up two runs and one RBI with no hits on the day after being walked three times.
- Five arms dealt for the Cougars with Michael Southard (), Eliot Higgins (Park Ridge, Ill.), Jack Carroll (North Aurora, Ill.), Jack Linko (New Lenox, Ill.), and Kadin Borck (McHenry, Ill.) all contributing for a total of eight strikeouts.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Cougar offense jump started things right away with a leadoff single to centerfield from Dorsch. Right behind him, Kasik singled to right field and put runners on first and second for Mahler. Three walks for the Cougars, paired with the two senior hits, would put the first two runs on the board for the game.
- Buckley would send a ball through the right side to score two while Hickman would wear a pitch and reload the bases once again. Back at the top of the order within the same inning, Dorsch would pick up his first grand slam of the season with a rocket to left center to put the Cougars up 8-0 heading into the bottom of the first.
- The Sabres would answer quickly and put two runs up with a two run homer to cut into the Cougar lead. In the top of the second, the Cougars would work to regain their eight run lead and extend even further after back-to-back doubles from Mahler and Krater would put one on the board for the inning.
- With walks for Owens and Boswell, a bases loaded scenario would allow Krater to score off a fielder's choice out to second, leaving a blank base. Buckley would steal at the first chance he got, but a walk for Hickman at the plate would load the bases once again. A sacrifice fly from Richie Sperando (Darien, Ill.) would put the Cougars up 11-2 heading to the bottom of the second.
- A quick three outs, completed with two strikeouts from Southard, would send the Cougars right back to the bats where they too would face a three up, three down scenario. The score would sit stagnant until the top of the sixth, where a leadoff single for Kasik paired with a double from Mahler would put runners on second and third with Krater at the plate. A sac fly from Krater would score one and extend the Cougar lead to ten.
- As the game headed to the bototm of the seventh with CUC still leading by ten, the Sabres would need to put at least one run on the board to continue plate, but they would exceed that and tack on five runs on four hits and make it a 12-7 lead for CUC.
- Wasting no time once again, a leadoff walk for Kasik would put one runner on base for Jerkatis to send a ball to left field and put runners on first and second. With a walk from Owens loading the bases up, a single up the middle from Boswell would score two and extend the CUC lead to 14-7.
- With both teams unable to produce offensively for the remainder of the game, the Cougars would close game two with a 14-7 victory.
HIGHLIGHTS
Picking up their third conference sweep of the season, the Cougars jump into second place in the NACC as they prepare to host Rockford University for a doubleheader on Tuesday, April 15h, with first pitch slated for a noon start time. Coverage can be found at cucougars.com/coverage.
