Lisle, Ill. – The Concordia University Chicago (CUC) softball team headed down to continue Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference (NACC) play against Benedictine University. Both games presented the same story, with the Cougars coming back from trailing deficits. Despite the strong offensive rallies in game one and two, the Cougars dropped both in walk-off fashion.
Game One: 6-5 L
Inside the Box Score
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McKyler Morris (Belvidere, Ill.) led the way for the Cougars, going two-for-two, including an RBI double.
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Haley Gulsby (Englewood, Fla.) and
Arissa Santos (Morena Valley, Calif.) each tallied a hit in the game.
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Mayah Larenas (Chino, Calif.) and Meliza Hadzic (Westchester, Ill.) contributed with an RBI each, while
Eliza Auger (Littleton, Colo) had three runs scored.
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Alyssa Campos (Eastvale, Calif.) and
Alyssa Lopez (Corona, Calif.) dished in the circle for the Cougars.
How It Happened
• Both teams went 1-2-3 in the first as both starters settled in quickly. This led to the top of the second, where the Cougars would get a leadoff walk from Morris, but a double play would erase it. Benedictine was able to scratch away their first run in the bottom of the second after stringing four hits, including a double and back-to-back singles.
• The Cougars threatened in the top half of the third with two runners on second and first after two walks but stranded both runners.
• Benedictine would add to their lead, scoring three runs in the bottom of the third, to go up 4-1.
• The Cougars would surge back in the top of the sixth, tying the game at 4-4. Gulsby led off the inning with a base hit, which was followed by an Auger walk. Campos, Larenas, and Hadzic would follow with three straight walks to cut the Eagle deficit to one. Campos scored on a wild pitch from Benedictine as the Cougars made it a new ball game. The Cougars continued to threaten with the bases loaded, but Benedictine would stop the rally short.
• Lopez would deliver a shutdown inning in the bottom of the sixth, getting two pop outs and a groundout,maintaining the Cougar momentum.
• The Cougars rallied to take the lead in the top half of the seventh. With one out, Auger would be hit by a pitch, which would be followed by a Morris single to right. Campos would move Auger up to third with a productive fly out to right, putting runners on the corners with two outs. Larenas would put the ball in play, which could not be handled by the Benedictine defense, which put the Cougars up 5-4. A next pitch flyout would put an end to the inning.
• In the bottom of the seventh, a leadoff single would put the tying run on first for Benedictine. Two consecutive walks would load the bases. A first-pitch fielder's choice kept the bases loaded with one out. A single to centerfield would tie the game at 5-5. A two-strike pitch was put in play to shortstop and a late throw allowed Benedictine to notch the walk-off over the Cougars.
Highlights
Game Two: 17-13 L
Inside the Box Score:
• Morris continued her offensive onslaught, going 4-for-6 with three doubles and four RBI.
• Several Cougars picked up a hit in game two, but Auger, Hadzic, and Larenas each had two hits. Larenas finished with two RBI as well.
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Alaina Pilas (Chicago, Ill.) and
Linley Southern (Decatur, Ill.) each added two RBIs to the effort.
How It Happened
• In the first inning, it would be the Cougars who played from in front. A leadoff walk by
Emily Garcia (Eastvale, Calif) set up a Morris double to right, which was then followed by another walk by Santos. Hadzic brought home Garcia on a sacrifice fly, which would be all the Cougars would muster as the following two hitters retired but the Cougars were up 1-0.
• Benedictine would respond with two runs of their own in the bottom of the first following a two-run single to center, taking the lead 2-1.
• The Cougars could not manufacture runs in the second or third inning. Benedictine added two runs in the bottom of the second, extending their lead 4-1.
• The top of the fourth saw the Cougars chip away as Larenas led off the inning with a single. After two consecutive flyouts, a two-out single from Auger put Cougars on first and second. Morris notched her second hit and double of the day which scored Larenas cutting the deficit in half. Despite a Santos walk the next at-bat, the Cougars would be held but now down 4-2.
• The bottom half of the fourth saw Benedictine add to their advantage, scoring five runs on three hits which put them up 9-2.
• The Cougars would not be dejected, as they rallied for four runs in the top of the fifth. A leadoff double to right from Campos got the table rolling. After a strikeout, Larenas would pick up her second hit on a single, which scored in Campos. A flyout would put two outs for the Cougars. Gulsby would follow with a walk, putting runners on first and second. Auger doubled, scoring Larenas. A Benedictine error would score Gulsby right after. Back-to-back walks from
Julia Pataluna (Commerce City, Colo.) and Hadzic with the bases loaded would cut the Benedictine lead to three. The Cougars would strand the bases loaded on a groundout, but were now down 9-6.
• The Cougars had a strong inning defensively as they did not give a run in the bottom of the fifth, keeping the deficit at three.
• The top of the sixth saw
Megan Bouska (Plainfield, Ill.) stir some offense for the Cougars with a single but would be left stranded. Benedictine continued to add with two more runs on two hits in the bottom of the sixth, increasing the lead to 11-6.
• The Cougars would storm back in the top of the seventh with eight runs. Three straight one-out singles from Morris, Pataluna, and Hadzic loaded up the bases. Campos walked, scoring a run. Southern would follow with a single, bringing in both Hadzic and Pataluna, making it an 11-8 game. After a strikeout, Pilas delivered a clutch two-out, two RBI single to center, cutting the lead to one. Gulsby and Auger kept the train rolling with a base hit and a hit by pitch, respectively, to load the bases once again. Morris would put the exclamation mark on her day with a bases-clearing double to center, putting the Cougars up by two. The Cougars would end the inning on a strikeout but headed to the bottom of the seventh with a two-run 13-11 lead.
• The bottom of the seventh, Benedictine did not slow down as they would win the game, putting up six runs on three hits, including a walk-off grand slam, ending the game 17-13.
Highlights
What Is Next
The Cougars will hit the field on Wednesday, March 26, for a non-conference road doubleheader against North Park University, with 3:00 PM and 5:00 PM start times. Coverage can be found at cuccougars.com/coverage.
