MONTGOMERY, ILL. – On a beautiful sunny day, the Concordia University Chicago (CUC) softball team competed in the first round of the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) playoffs. With today's games being single elimination, it was a crucial situation for No. 7 CUC as they faced the No. 6 Marian University Sabres. The Cougars showed grit but ultimately fell 8-0, ending their season.
Box Score:
- Arissa Santos (Moreno Valley, Calif.) went a perfect two-for-two at the plate.
- Melisa Hadzic (Westchester, Ill.) was the only other Cougar to record a hit, going one-for-two.
- Morgan Houfek (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) picked up two strikeouts in 2.0 innings of work in the circle.
How It Happened:
- The Cougars took a minute to get the bats going but with two outs, Santos singled up the middle to try and get something going. Hadzic followed up with another single and moved Santos up to second. Unfortunately, a ball to the shortstop would result in a fielder's choice to get Hadzic out at second and end the top of the inning. The Sabres quickly got to work and loaded the bases and then recorded three across home plate after a bases clearing double. The Sabres would be able to score one more before Haley Gulsby (Englewood, Fla.) would make a diving catch in left field to end the inning.
- The Cougars couldn't generate any offense and quickly headed back out into the field. A Cougar error put one runner on and a double from the Sabres helped them tack on another run to go up 5-0 before McKyler Morris (Belvidere, Ill.) would make the out in center field.
- In the third, CUC once again struggled at the plate. With Marian coming back up to bat, the started the back half of the inning with a solo home run. Houfek came into pitch after that and got one strikeout and minimized the damage. The Cougars were now down, 6-0.
- Santos got her bat going with a lead off single in the top of the fourth, but a double play quickly erased the forward charge. Alyssa Campos (Eastvale, Calif.) won her battle at the plate and got walked to first but the Cougars couldn't capitalize. However, strong pitching from Houfek, including another strikeout and a line drive grab from Campos ended the inning.
- In the fifth, the Cougars once again headed back into the field without cutting into the lead. After a pitching change, the first two Sabres batters were walked. Campos would make the smart play on the ball to get the lead runner and put an out on the board. Unfortunately, the Sabres would score a run on a Cougar error and another on a sacrifice fly to take the game, 8-0, after five.
HIGHLIGHTS:
WHAT'S NEXT:
The Cougars ended the season with a final record of 17-24 overall and 12-12 in NACC play. CUC Softball wants to thank all the fans for their continued support throughout the season and looks forward to seeing everyone next year. To keep up to date with everything CUC Softball this offseason follow us on both Instagram and X @cucsoftball. Updates such as rosters and schedules can be found at cucougars.com.
