Written by Carter Gledhill
River Forest, IL – What was supposed to be a spring break full of baseball and sunshine turned into a heartbreaking end of the 2020 season. The Cougars (5-5) saw their season cut short because of health concerns amidst the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. The NCAA canceled all spring athletic championships on March 12, and the NACC canceled all-conference competition on March 13, 2020.
The trip started on March 7, 2020, vs Wheaton College (Mass.). The Cougars got on the board first thanks to Kevin Garcia launching the first Cougar home run of the season in the bottom of the second inning. The Lyons grabbed the momentum and scored four runs, making it 4-1 by the sixth inning. In the eighth inning, freshman Garry Maynard got the Cougars going again with a double into deep center field that scored two points. Garcia hit a single and Maynard made it to home base, tying the game to 4-4. After holding the Lyons at the top of the ninth inning, CUC won the game thanks to Mateo Calle’s baserunning skills. The win marked Kolin Conner’s first win as head coach by a score of 5-4.
The next game versus Fontbonne University showcased the strength of the Cougar pitching staff as Adam Gregory picked up the win behind a six-inning shutout performance while striking out seven batters. The bullpen allowed only one earned run in three innings of work from Chandler Kerr, Cade Laudenschlager, and Westin Stuzman. Matt Fauth led the Cougars offensively with three hits, three runs, and two RBIs.
The Cougars hit a road bump when they played Keystone University on March 9. The Cougars jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the second inning but stalled after Keystone scored four unanswered runs. Keystone won the game 4-3. The highlight for the Cougars was senior Noah Dressler who pitched four innings, allowing only one hit and striking out five.
The highly-anticipated doubleheader between rival Webster University didn’t disappoint anyone who attended the game at Saint Leo University. The continuation game from March 1 ended in the twelfth inning as Brayden Benavides singled up the middle and drove in Brody Mariotti. CUC won game one 2-1. In the following game, the Gorloxs and Cougars went into extra innings again. The Cougars were able to score four runs in the top of the eleventh to put away the Gorloxs with a score of 15-11. CUC had eleven hits in the game, and freshman Bryce Vincent had a career-high with five hits and five RBIs.
There was not much to say in the game versus Rowan University as the Profs proved to be a difficult task for the Cougars. The Profs won the game 12-2 in seven innings. Garcia led CUC offensively with two hits, along with support from Calle and Maynard.
Cole Carman had a stellar outing versus University of Dubuque throwing eight innings, allowing only four hits and one unearned run that came in the fourth inning. CUC’s bats were quiet all game with six hits and six strikeouts as a team. The Cougars made some noise in the fifth and ninth inning but failed to scrape across a run. The Cougars fell to the Spartans 1-0.
In the final game of the season versus Clarkson University was filled with emotions as the Cougars said farewell to six seniors. CJ Selner delivered an emotional broadcast that highlighted several significant moments. In his final at-bat in the fourth inning, Fauth hit a solo home run over the left-field scoreboard to get the Cougars on the board. Senior pitcher Kyle Strepek recorded his first collegiate hit with a single, in addition to all four senior pitchers getting to pitch, as well. An emotional moment for Cougar fans was when Alex Crinigan stepped onto the mound. After hurting his pitching arm two days prior to playing against Rowan, Crinigan was able to deliver one last strike before coming out of the game.
