RIVER FOREST, ILL. – As we near the end of February, we rapidly approach the long-awaited arrival of Concordia Baseball season. The Cougars are coming off a much-needed return to the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) Tournament, where they entered as the three seed, but fell from the tournament quickly. With a multitude of new factors heading into the 2026 season, including a new coaching staff, new athletes, and a new mindset, the Cougars look to return with the same intensity and hunger that they've had for years. In his first season leading his alma mater, Head Coach Matt Smith looks to make a return to the conference tournament with the help from a strong coaching staff consisting of Jack Murphy, Connor Nelson, Jake Garvey, Brennan Fisher, and Connor Mannis.
 
Last Season
The Cougars opened their season with unexpected adversity forced the cancellation of their Kentucky tournament. With less than 48 hours' notice, the squad packed up and headed to Indiana, splitting a pair of games to begin the year. After narrowly falling to Franklin College, the Cougars rebounded with a thrilling 9-8 walkoff win over North Park University, highlighted by key hits from Tyler Dorsch (Phoenix, Ariz.), Yashion Boswell (Lynwood, Ill.), and Tyler Krater (Phoenix, Ariz.) along with Xavier Zagerman's (Chandler, Ariz.) first collegiate home run. The momentum carried into their annual spring break trip to the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational, where they ended the trip with a 5-4 record after taking on a challenging slate of opponents. Returning the Midwest, the Cougars posted a 2-1 mark against Collegiate Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) opponents in Elmhurst University, North Central College, and Wheaton College before opening NACC play.


Conference play featured both tight losses and important statement wins. The Cougars battled eventual NACC champion MSOE in their home opener, falling in both before earning their first home victory in a high-scoring win over North Park. As the season progressed, CUC started to find their rhythm, collecting series wins over Dominican University, St. Norbert College, Benedictine University, Edgewood University, Marian University, Lakeland University, and Wisconsin Lutheran College. Strong pitching performances led to four shutouts on the year, while the offense surged behind explosive outings from Krater and Dorsch, including a dominant Senior Day sweep over Lakeland. A seven-game win streak, the team's longest since their 2019 SuperRegional year, helped boost the team to a 15-7 NACC record and clinch a spot in the 2025 NACC Tournament, highlighted by an impressive win over University of Chicago, a team that would later go on to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Entering the NACC Tournament as the No. 3 seed, the Cougars faced a challenging path. After an opening game loss to Edgewood, they battled with Benedictine in an elimination game, but ultimately saw their season conclude. Despite the early tournament exit, the year was marked by growth and depth, particularly on the mound, where ten pitchers made double-digit appearances. Offensively, the team evolved into a more multidimensional unit, improving baserunning and power production. The Cougars capped the season off with 11 All-Conference selections.


 
Postseason Honors
The Cougars secured 11 All-Conference honors: Bryce Jones (Ottawa, Ill.), Tyler Krater (Phoenix, Ariz.), Tyler Dorsch (Phoenix, Ariz.), and Jake Mahler (Vernon Hills, Ill.) all earned first team accolades, Ryan Renella (Bartlett, Ill.), Michael Southard (Northbrook, Ill.), Eliot Higgins (Park Ridge, Ill.), and Michael Kasik (Chandler, Ariz.) earned second team honors, while Brandon Mahler (Vernon Hills, Ill.), Yashion Boswell (Lynwood, Ill.), and Dylan Ferraro (Windsor, Colo.) picked up honorable mention.





The American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) / Rawlings announced their 2025 Division III All-Region Teams on May 27th with three Cougar athlete's name written on the list. Tyler Dorsch (Phoenix, Ariz.), Tyler Krater (Phoenix, Ariz.), and Jake Mahler (Vernon Hills, Ill.) each earned Second Team recognition for their star-studded seasons.



 
Rounding out the postseason accolades, five members earned a spot on the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team. Tyler Dorsch (Phoenix, Ariz.), Jake Mahler (Vernon Hills, Ill.), Michael Kasik (Chandler, Ariz.), Eliot Higgins (Park Ridge, Ill.), and Dylan Ferraro (Windsor, Colo.) all excelled on the field and in the classroom. 

 
Impactful Returners
The Cougars return a large load of leadership with fifth-year pitcher Anthony Pullano leading the way alongside four-year seniors Brandon Mahler, Jake Mahler, David Deimling, Eliot Higgins, Richie Sperando, Dom Owens, Jack Carroll, and Kyle Ston. In addition, the Cougars return key position players such as Xavier Zagerman, Cam Buckley, Brendan Holloway, Connor Jerkatis, and Jack Linko.
The pitching staff sees a bulk return with all four starters, Ryan Renella, Dylan Ferraro, Dylan Scott, and Michael Southard, as well as key bullpen guys such as Kadin Borck, Kyle Connelly, Allen Mateo, Blake Hickey, and Ryker Keller.

Fresh Faces
The Cougars bring in a hearty group of talent with a mix of new faces for the 2026 season. Incoming freshmen include Kyle Cristofano, Connor Peckham, Dom Pisciotti, Samuel Beringer, Matthew Licardi, Quintin Guardia, and Jonathan Tipton. In addition to the freshmen, three key transfers have joined Cougars in Austin Koberstein, Joshua Mathew, and Garrett Williams.
 
Looking Ahead
The Cougars open the season on the road for a three-game stretch in Memphis, Tenn. They'll open on February 20^th against Rhodes College before playing two neutral games on February 21^st and 22^nd against University of Chicago and Franklin College, respectively. Once they return home from The Volunteer State, they'll hit the road right away for their annual trip to the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational, where they'll play five games against Grove City College, Bluffton University, Wartburg College, St. John Fisher University, Saint Mary's University (Minn.), and University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Keeping the trend of the quick turnaround, after returning from Florida, they'll head back down South to the Lone Star State for a three-game series against Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas on Friday, March 13^th and Saturday, March 14^th.
 
After a busy, cross country month of games, the Cougars will settle in at Wheaton College on March 18^th for their first game in Illinois. They'll kick off NACC play and have their long-awaited home opener on March 21^st as they host Concordia Wisconsin before hitting the road for road series against Dominican on March 25^th and Lakeland on March 28^th. The Cougars will return to River Forest on March 31^st to host Benedictine before single game against North Park on April 2^nd breaks up the NACCtion. The Cougars will return to The Thunderdome once again on April 4^th as they host St. Norbert College, but quickly return to back-to-back road contests against Aurora on April 8^th and Marin on April 11^th.
 
Finally having a solid stretch of home games, the Cougars will have Alumni Day on Sunday, April 12^th for a single-game against Elmhurst before hosting Illinois Tech on April 14^th and Edgewood on April 18^th, the latter being Senior Day.  They'll end their six-game home stretch on April 22^nd with a single-game against North Central for their final non-conference matchup of the year.

With only NACC contests left on the schedule, the Cougars will exchange road and home contests with two games at Wisconsin Lutheran on April 25^th, the home finale against reigning NACC Champions, MSOE on April 28^th, and the regular season finale on the road against Rockford on May 1^st.

The 2026 NACC Tournament is set to kick off on Wednesday, May 6^th for the opening, single-elimination games, while the rest of the tournament begins on Thursday, May 7^th. This year, the NACC Tournament is hosted at Benedictine University.
 
Statistical Leaders
Batting
Batting Average – Jake Mahler, .380
Slugging Percentage – *Tyler Krater, .653
Runs Scored – *Michael Kasik, 43
Hits – *Michael Kasik & *Tyler Dorsch, 62
Runs Batted In – *Tyler Dorsch, 50
Home Runs – *Tyler Krater, 11
Walks – *Elijah Hickman, 33
Stolen Bases – *Elijah Hickman, 27

Pitching
Earned Run Average (ERA)~ – Ryan Renella, 3.52
Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched (WHIP)~ – Ryan Renella, 1.43
Innings Pitched – Ryan Renella, 53.2
Strikeouts – Ryan Renella, 39
Walks Allowed – Ryan Renella, 26

Fielding
Putouts – *Michael Kasik, 335
Assists – *Yashion Boswell, 84
Fielding Double Plays – *Michael Kasik, 25

*Not on 2026 roster
~Minimum of 1 IP/G
 
 
Cougar Coverage
As the team gears up to head to Tennessee, coverage for CUC Baseball all season long can be found at cucougars.com/coverage. Real-time updates can be found on the team's Instagram and X @cucbaseball.