Concordia University Chicago Athletics

MILWAUKEE, WIS. – The Concordia University Chicago (CUC) baseball team delivered a statement performance on the road, sweeping the Wisconsin Lutheran Warriors to secure their spot in the 2026 Northern Athletics Collegiate Confernece (NACC) Tournament for the second consecutive year. 


GAME ONE: 10-3 W
INSIDE THE BOX

• Brandon Mahler (Vernon Hills, Ill.) and Richie Sperando (Darien, Ill.) each went two-for-five at the plate while driving in two RBIs while Mahler tacked on a run of his own and a stolen base.
• Brendan Holloway (Vernon Hills, Ill.) also picked up two hits in the game, going two-for-five at the plate with two runs and one stolen base.
• Three Cougars dished on the mound with Ryan Renella (New Lenox, Ill.) dishing six strikeouts in six innings of work while Kyle Ston (Winfield, Ill.) and Josh Prosise (Joliet, Ill.) came in for relief.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Cougars got to work early with a walk for Holloway paired with a single from Jake Mahler (Vernon Hills, Ill.) to put two runners on. An error from the Warriors would score one and put another in scoring position where a single down the right field line from Xavier Zagerman (Chandler, Ariz.) would score J. Mahler and put B. Mahler on third. A successful double steal from Zagerman and B. Mahler would score another and put the Cougars up 3-0. A walk for Jack Linko (New Lenox, Ill.) and a single to right field from Jeffery Beckert (Mount Prospect, Ill.) would score one run and plant a runner on third for the second time in the inning. A wild pitch would give Linko time to score while a single from Sperando would give Beckert time to score as the Cougars would get through one full lineup in the inning, going ahead 6-0.
• A quick bottom of the first held the Cougars with the six run advantage before six outs in six batters would close the second inning scoreless. The Warriors would pick up their first runs of the day in the bottom of the third where four hits would score two runs, but a double play would get them out of a jam with the four run advantage.
• The Cougars would answer quickly with hits from Holloway and B. Mahler that would take a run back and put CUC ahead 7-2.
• A scoreless inning for the Warriors, highlighted by two strikeouts from Renella, would give the Cougars the opportunity to get back behind their bats. Dom Owens (Frankfurt, Ill.) would find his way on base before getting to third on a passed ball where a single to left field from Sperando would score him and put the Cougars ahead by six runs yet again.
• The game would sit at the 8-2 advantage for a few innings until the bottom of the sixth where the Warriors would tack on one run on two hits, but two strikeouts from Renella would get the Cougars out of the inning with minimal damage.
• Zagerman would take a walk to start the top of the seventh before stealing second to put him in scoring position with Linko at the plate. A single to centerfield from Linko would score Zagerman and push the Cougars out by six.
• The last run of the game would come in the top of the eighth where a leadoff single from Holloway and a stolen base would put him in scoring position. A single to right field from B. Mahler would send him home.
• The Cougars would close out the game off a double play from Sperando, Beckert, and Linko to take the game one victory.

 
GAME TWO: 4-0 W
INSIDE THE BOX

• Cam Buckley (New Lenox, Ill.) led the way in game two going three-for-five at the plate with two RBIs and one run of his own while contributing the team's lone double in the game.
• J. Mahler also went three-for-five at the plate with one RBI while B. Mahler went two-for-four with one RBI.
• Two pitchers dealt for the Cougars with Matthew Licardi (Peoria, Ariz.) going seven innings with Kyle Connelly (New Lenox, Ill.) coming in for two innings of relief.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Cougars started things off right away with Buckley leading off with a single to right field. A single from J. Mahler would put runners on second and third, but the inning would end scoreless. The Cougar defense would hold the Warriors scoreless and let the offense get back to work.
• Owens would take a walk to start the top of the second before working his way to second off a sacrifice bunt from Austin Koberstein (Milwaukee, Wis.). With a single from Buckley sending Owens home, the Cougars would strike first yet again and take the 1-0 lead after two full innings
• The game would sit at the 1-0 advantage until the top of the fourth inning where a leadoff single from Sperando paired with a wild pitch would put him in scoring position. Buckley would deliver his third hit of the game that would score one and put himself in scoring position for Holloway to pick up the single and put runners on the corner bags. A hard hit ball towards the six-hole would give Buckley time to score and move Holloway over to third where a sacrifice fly from B. Mahler would score him and put the Cougars ahead 4-0 and hand him his 58^th RBI of the season, moving him up to fifth in the single-season record book and fourth in the career record book (152).
• With the fourth inning bringing the only and final runs to the scoreboard, the Cougar defense would lock in and only allow five hits for the remainder of the game. The Cougars would have a few opportunities to tack on more runs, including the top of the seventh where a leadoff walk for Owens paired with an infield single from Koberstein and a sacrifice bunt from Beckert would put runners in scoring position. The runners would be stranded and the game would continue to sit at the 4-0 advantage for the Cougars.
• The bottom of the seventh would see the final strikeout for Licardi who would deliver one strikeout and two flyouts in the inning to keep the Warriors off the scoreboard.
• The final two innings would be a pitcher's game, holding each other scoreless and handing the Cougars their 14^th conference win, securing their spot in the NACC Tournament.

 
WHAT'S NEXT

• The Cougars host Milwaukee School of Engineering on Tuesday, April 28^th as they look to secure their final seeding in the NACC Tournament. This game serves as the home finale for the regular season with first pitch set for noon. Coverage can be found at cucougars.com.