Strong Pitching Performances Boost Cougars Over Gray Wolves

(Howell, MI) -- The Cleary Cougars baseball team took on Lourdes University today in a WHAC conference matchup. Slight rain and cold weather rolled in early on but the Cougars prevailed to pick up two key wins.

In Game 1: Cleary University would kick things off right out of the gate when Gavin Kempainen stole home on a double steal by the Cougars, giving them a 1st inning 1-0 lead. In the 2nd inning, Max Tomeszewski would lay down a sacrifice bunt to advance runners Sam Browne and Albert Gonzalez. Sam Browne would score on the play on a throwing error by the 1st baseman. Gavin Kempainen would then hit a 2 RBI single to increase the Cougar lead to 4-0. In the 3rd inning, the Cougars would add one more run off of back-to-back doubles by Albert Gonzalez and Max Tomaszewski. In the 4th, the Gray Wolves would get one back off of an error. The Cougars would respond quickly though in the bottom half of the inning when Ben Cerven stole 3rd base and scored on a throwing error by the catcher on the play making it a 6-1 ballgame. Caleb Buda would come up in the bottom of the 5th inning and hit a sacrifice flyball in foul territory that allowed Gavin Kempainen to score from 3rd base. This would be all the Cougars needed offensively as they followed Cougar pitcher Nate Raniszewski through a strong performance on the mound, giving them a 7-2 win over the Gray Wolves. 

Nate Raniszewski (3-2) would dominate on the mound going all 7.0 innings, allowing 2 runs (0 earned) on 5 hits with 2 strikeouts. Gavin Kempainen would pick up 2 hits and 2 walks during this game increasing his AVG (Batting Average) to .314 and his OBP (On Base Percentage) to .520 on the season. 

In Game 2: With two walks in the 1st inning for the Cougars, Sam Browne would step up to the plate and collect 2 RBIs after hitting his first triple of the season, giving the Cougars a 2-0 lead. Lourdes would strike back in the top of the 3rd inning securing 3 runs on 2 hits and an error to take a 3-2 lead. In the bottom half of the 3rd, Andrew Piloske would reach on an error and Sam Browne stepped up to the plate. He would deliver the Cougars a 2-run home run to center field to take a 4-3 lead. After some back-and-forth innings, the Cougars would get nifty to secure an insurance run. After a sacrifice bunt by Brice Wesley, courtesy runner Kristian Scalf would reach 3rd base on a wild pitch. Another sacrifice bunt by Gavin Kempainen would score Kristian Scalf from 3rd base increasing the lead to 5-3 after 6 innings of play. In the 7th inning with two runners on and 2 outs in the inning, Spencer Jamieson drove a ball into center field, scoring both runs and giving the Cougars the breathing room they needed to go on to pick up a WHAC conference win by a final score of 7-3. 

Marty McDonald (1-4) would get his first win of the season on the mound after going 6.0 innings, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) with a career-high 9 strikeouts. Ryan Lieng would pick up his 2nd save on the season after finishing off the last 3.0 innings of the game for the Cougars. Sam Browne would also go 3-3 with a walk and 4 RBIs in this game, just a double short of hitting the cycle. 

The Cougars improved to 7-16 overall and 5-7 in WHAC conference play this year. They look to take the field on Tuesday, April 2nd  as they return to Lake Trust Stadium for a home series with Siena Heights University as make-up games from March 22nd. First pitch is set for 1:00 PM.