EDINBURG, TX - The Chicago State baseball team traveled south to Edinburg, Texas to take on WAC foe UTRGV, where they picked up one win and dropped two on the weekend. The lone win came in the finale of the series on Sunday, where the Cougars pitching staff picked up its first shutout in a 1-0 win.
Game One (Friday, April 5): CSU 1 | UTRGV 8
The Cougars dropped the opener of the series in front of a crowd of 1146 despite being the first to lead in the game. The Cougars lone run of the game came in the 1st inning, but the Vaqueros were able to shut down the Cougar offense for the remainder of the game.
Matt Sullivan (Lake in the Hills, Ill., Huntley) kicked off the offense in the game in the 1st inning when he hit a sacrifice fly to right to score Nick Heidenthal (McHenry, Ill., Grant) and give the Cougars a 1-0 lead. It would be all Vaqueros after that, however, as they tied the game in the 2nd. UTRGV added four runs in the 3rd to take a 5-1 lead, then scored two more in the 8th to take an 8-1 lead, which would ultimately be the final score of the contest.
Brett Gregory (Lompoc, Calif., Cabrillo) (1-5) took the loss in the opener after lasting five innings. He struck out two Vaqueros and allowed five hits in the contest. Anthony Leedle (Clinton, Wis.) replaced Gregory in the 6th and was able to contribute two innings with three strikeouts. Kyle Merkel (Los Angeles, Calif.) was the only other Cougar to get action on the mound in the opener as he picked up one strikeout after coming in during the 8th and tossing one inning.
There was not much offense to go around for the Cougars in Friday's game, as CSU was only able to pick up five hits in the loss. Reggie Brock Jr. (Chicago, Ill., Simeon) contributed two of the hits, as he went 2-for-4 to lead the Green and White offense. Nick Heidenthal, Gabriel Coburn (Windermere, Fla.), and Patrick Arndt (Chesterton, Ind.) had a hit a piece to round out the offense for the Cougs. Nick Heidenthal also walked twice in the contest and scored the lone run for CSU.
Game Two (Saturday, April 6): CSU 4 | UTRGV 5
The loss in game two was a heartbreaker for the Cougars, as they were defeated in walk-off fashion in the bottom of the 9th. The game was a back and forth affair before the Vaqueros finally went ahead in the 9th.
The Vaqueros struck first in game two, as Tyler Torres drew a bases loaded walk to give UTRGV a 1-0 lead in the 1st. CSU struck next when freshman James Rosenhagen (Scottsdale, Ariz., Notre Dame Prep) doubled off the left field wall in the 3rd to score Reggie Brock Jr.. The Vaqueros responded in the following half inning by plating two to take a 3-1 advantage. Daulton Ryans (Mishawaka, Ind., Mishawaka) then picked up his 13th and 14th RBIs in the 5th on a bases loaded single to tie the game at three apiece.
UTRGV took the lead back in the bottom half of the 5th when Christian Sepulveda doubled in a run. The back and forth battle continued in the 6th when Patrick Arndt was able to tie the game up for a third time on an RBI single that scored Gabriel Coburn. That would be the final run for both teams until the game winning run for the Vaqueros in the bottom of the 9th, when Tyler Torres singled in the walk off run for UTRGV.
Dylan Cumming (Grand Blanc, Mich., Grand Blanc) started the game for the Cougars, and he fared well despite a handful of jams. Despite walking six in the contest, he only allowed three runs through four innings. He also picked up two strikeouts in the start. Yunis Halim (Chicago, Ill., Oak Lawn) (2-1) was handed the loss despite a quality performance out of the bullpen. He threw a season high four innings and only allowed one run which was the game winner in the 9th. Yunis Halim was able to set one Vaquero down on strikes in the loss.
The Cougars picked up just five hits again on Saturday, but this time were able to manage four runs out of it. Five Cougars picked up one hit each in the game, as Nick Heidenthal, Reggie Brock Jr., James Rosenhagen (Scottsdale, Ariz./Notre Dame Prep), Daulton Ryans, and Patrick Arndt all chipped in a hit. Ryans was the lone Cougar with two RBIs in the game, as Rosenhagen and Arndt each had one apiece. Reggie Brock Jr. was a hard out for the Vaqueros, as he went 1-for-2 with two walks and two runs.
Game Three (Sunday, April 7): CSU 1 | UTRGV 0
Sunday brought the Cougars their one win on the weekend, as the Green and White pitching propelled them to the win after shutting out the Vaqueros. It was the first time UTRGV had been shutout all season long. The win moved the Cougars record to 8-21, and 3-6 in conference.
There was not much offensive action to speak of in the game, but the little amount that there was came in the 2nd. After Reggie Brock Jr. doubled, Tyler Lowe (Northville, Mich., Northville) doubled down the right field line to score him and bring in what would ultimately be the only run for both sides on the day.
The great pitching from the Cougars started with Rodny Valdes (Panama City, Panama) (1-0), who made his first start since February 16th due to injury. Rodny Valdes fared well in his return game, as he tossed five innings of shutout ball. He was stingy with the Vaqueros in the game as he allowed just two hits and walked none. He struck out four batters as well in the win. Redshirt junior Joe Baier (Suamico, Wis., Bay Port) then entered the game to pitch his second and third innings of the season, and he picked up right where Valdes left off. He allowed just one hit in his two innings of work, and the hit was the lone baserunner that Baier allowed. Anthony Leedle (1) picked up the two inning save as he tossed flawless innings in the 8th and 9th frames where he struck out one. In total, the Cougars only allowed four baserunners and struck out five.
The Cougs picked up six hits in the contest with two of them coming from Reggie Brock Jr.. He went 2-for-3 with a double and the sole run on the day. Patrick Arndt went 1-for-2 with two walks in the contest to add onto his stellar weekend. Tyler Lowe went 1-for-4, but his one hit was the biggest on the day as it ended up accounting for the entire Cougar offense. Matt Sullivan went 1-for-4 on the day, and Tyler Zunkel (Lombard, Ill., Willowbrook) chipped in one hit of his own.
Next Up:
The Cougars will be on the road again this weekend for WAC play, as they will head west to take on Utah Valley (7-23) in Orem, Utah. First pitch of game one is scheduled for Friday at 7 p.m. CT
