(Sugar Grove, IL) – Waubonsee Community College's baseball team wrapped up its regular season by hosting Kishwaukee College on a summer-like Sunday afternoon. The Chiefs' bats warmed up with the temperatures as they downed the Kougars 15-4 in five innings in game one and then held on to win the second contest 3-1 to move over the .500 mark at 26-25 for the season. Coach Rodney Lopez' crew is set to begin Region 4 Division III Tournament play on Thursday, May 11. Waubonsee will find out what seed they will be, their opponent and the location for their opening round game of the six-team, double-elimination tournament tomorrow afternoon.
After Waubonsee recognized their 12 sophomores in a brief pre-game ceremony, the visiting Kougars made a bid to spoil the Chiefs' day. Kishwaukee utilized three hits, two walks and an error to score three times before fans had hardly settled into their seats. Waubonsee immediately got one of those runs back when Jaron Schiera led off the bottom of the first with a line drive home run just left of the scoreboard in right center field. Three batters later Brendon Wilson grounded a single to center field to drive in a run to quickly make it a 3-2 game. After a pitching change by the Kougars, Cole Schrank ripped a one-hop double off the center field fence to knot the score. Lukas Haddox and Nathan Kennedy then each lofted sacrifice fly outs to put Waubonsee in front 5-3. However, the Chiefs were not done as Michael Mumme singled to left field and Zion Pena followed with a towering two-run homer to left field to cap off a seven-run first inning.
Neither team scored over the next three innings before Kishwaukee pushed across a run in the top of the fifth on another Chiefs' error. Waubonsee's bats then came alive again in the bottom of the frame as they erupted for eight runs, highlighted by Chazz Crook's walk-off three-run home run to left field to end the game by the 10-run slaughter rule. The inning started with a double to straight away center field by Wilson. Schrank then ripped a line shot back at Kishwaukee pitcher Dean Rizzo which he snagged for the first out. That turned out to be the only out Kishwaukee would register in the frame.
Haddox smacked a double to left field to drive in Wilson. Kennedy followed with another double as Haddox scored easily. After Mumme drew a walk Pena ripped the fourth two-bagger of the inning to knock in Kennedy. Schiera walked and Noe Marrero then followed with a two-run single to left field before Crook stepped to the plate and cleared the bases with his shot into the trees beyond the left field fence. Pena finished the game 2 for 3 with a double, home run, three runs batted in and two runs scored. Wilson was also 2 for 3 with a run driven in and two runs scored, while reliever Blake Sotir picked up the win allowing just one run over three innings of work.
In game two the Chiefs got on the board in first as Haddox ripped a two-out double to left center field in the bottom of the second to score Matthew Bivens who had led off the inning with a single to left. Haddox then scored a moment later as Schiera smacked a single to left field to give Waubonsee a 2-0 lead. Meanwhile, four different Chiefs' pitchers no-hit the Kougars through the four innings before Evan Hill ripped a single up the middle in the top of the fifth. A wild pitch then moved him to second base and Hill scored on a single down the right field line by Trevor Delporte, with an error on the play allowing Delporte to get into scoring position. Allen Mateo came on in relief for Waubonsee and stranded the potential tying run at second base by striking out Kishwaukee's Tyler Jacobsen.
Waubonsee added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth when Eric Gonzalez drew a walk to start the inning. Kennedy then laid down a sacrifice bunt and Gonzalez alertly raced all the way to third when Kishwaukee initially left the base unguarded. Gonzalez slide in safely when the Kougars' catcher, who belatedly sprinted down to cover third dropped the throw. That turned out to be an important play as Gonzalez scored two pitches later on a sacrifice fly to center field by Ryan Buck to give the Chiefs a 3-1 lead. Kishwaukee got a pair of runners on base in the top of the seventh to make things interesting. However, Damian Knoll induced a pair of fly outs to end the game.
Eight Waubonsee pitchers combined to limit the Kougars to only four hits in the game while striking out six and walking only one. Bivens led the Chiefs' offense going 3 for 3 with a run scored.
