RIVER FOREST, Ill. – With the joy of Easter weekend, the Cougars of Concordia University Chicago (CUC) athletics put in some outstanding performances last week. Catch all the action below.
 
Track & Field
The Cougars' next meet will be this weekend, April 10-11, at the Chicagoland Championships, hosted by Elmhurst University.
 
Men's Volleyball (11-13, 3-9)
The men's volleyball team rounded out its season with matches against Illinois Tech and Marian University.
 
Against the Scarlet Hawks, the Cougars rallied after going two sets down, but ultimately fell, 3-2. Jackson Stella (Hoffman Estates, Ill.) led the team with 22 points, 20 kills, six digs, four blocks, and an assist. Leon Gudzovski (Des Plaines, Ill.) added 13.5 points, nine kills, two aces, four blocks, and four digs. Alexander Ford (Skokie, Ill.) also contributed nine kills, six blocks, a dig, and an ace for 13 points. Elijah Mosher (Clayton, Ohio) aided the Cougars' offense with 52 assists.
 
The Cougars' final match of the season was at home against the Sabres of Marian, where they fell, 3-1. Ford led the squad with 18 points, 14 kills, four blocks, and two aces. Marcin Hoffman (Inverness, Ill.) and Stella each totaled 12 points, 10 kills, and 10 digs. Hoffman added three assists and two aces while Stella picked up two blocks and an ace. Mosher had an all-around match, contributing 24 assists and 10 digs. Michael Cardines (Chicago, Ill.) led defensively with 14 digs.
 
The Cougars finish their season 11-13 overall and 3-9 in Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference (NACC) play.
 
Baseball (11-11, 6-3)
The CUC baseball team continued NACC play with three big wins.
 
The Cougars first played the first game in the series against Benedictine University. Initially going down 5-0, CUC roared back to take the game, 8-7. Jake Mahler (Vernon Hills, Ill.) went two-for-four at the plate, with two home runs and four RBIs. Brandon Mahler (Vernon Hills, Ill.) and Richie Sperando (Darien, Ill.) also went two-for-four with Sperando tallying an RBI and Mahler scoring a run. Xavier Zagerman (Chandler, Ariz.) and Jack Linko (New Lenox, Ill) each went one-for-four, both hitting home runs. Michael Southard (Northbrook, Ill.) picked up the win on the mound, recording three strikeouts on 10 batters faced in two innings. Kyle Connelly (New Lenox, Ill.) picked up the save, closing out the game in the ninth inning, recording one strikeout on three batters faced.
 
Then CUC hosted St. Norbert College (SNC) for a doubleheader. A five-run rally in the bottom of the ninth in game one secured the 8-7 victory for the Cougars. J. Mahler went three-for-five at the plate with one RBI and one run scored. B. Mahler followed, going two-for-four with one RBI and one run scored. Ryan Renella (Bartlett, Ill.)  had a career-high day, registering 11 strikeouts in eight innings pitched.
 
In game two, CUC came out on top, 9-2. J. Mahler continued to be the Cougars' frontman, going three-for-four at the plate with three RBIs and two runs of his own. B. Mahler went two-for-four with three RBIs and a run scored. Zagerman went two-for-four at the plate with three RBIs. Matthew Licardi (Peoria, Ariz.) picked up his second win of the season on the mound, pitching a career-high six innings pitched for a career-high three strikeouts.
 
The Cougars play six games this week. First, they will finish their series against Benedictine on Monday, April 6. The game will start at 3:00 pm in River Forest. Then on Wednesday, April 8, CUC will head to Aurora University for a double header. First pitch will be at 12:00 pm. On Friday, April 10, the Cougars stay on the road and head up to Fond du Lac, Wis. to face Marian in a doubleheader. First pitch will be at 12:00 pm. Finally, the Cougars return home and take a break from NACC play on Sunday, April 12, to host Elmhurst at 2:00 pm.
 
Softball (7-15, 2-8)
The Cougars played two doubleheaders this week.
 
First, they played non-conference opponent, Carthage College. Despite a valiant effort, CUC fell 8-7 in game one in eight innings. Mayah Larenas (Chino, Calif.) went two-for-two at the plate, recording two RBIs. Melisa Hadzic (Westchester, Ill) went two-for-four, scoring two runs of her own. Haley Gulsby (Englewood, Fla.) also went two-for-four, tacking on a run. Emily Garcia (Eastvale, Calif.) and Julia Pataluna (Commerce City, Colo.) both went one-for-one at the plate, with Garcia putting up a run and Pataluna tallying an RBI.
 
In game two, CUC fell 7-1. McKyler Morris (Belvidere, Ill.) and Eliza Auger (Littleton, Colo.) both went one-for-two at the plate, with Auger collecting an RBI. Emily Lucero (Chino, Calif.) scored the lone run for the Cougars.
 
CUC then returned to NACC play as the team traveled to De Pere, Wis. to take on SNC. In game one, the Cougars fell 10-3. Morris went three-for-four at the plate while recording a run. Gulsby followed, going two-for-three at the plate, picking up one run and an RBI. Esmeralda Luevano (Chicago, Ill) scored a run for the Cougars, going one-for-one at the plate.
 
In game two, the Cougars bounced back to win 6-3. Garcia went two-for-two at the plate, collecting a run and an RBI. Hadzic went three-for-four at the plate, recording three RBIs. Gulsby went one-for-two and added a run.
 
This week the team has three doubleheaders. They will host Rockford University on Monday, April 6. First pitch will be at 2:30 pm. On Wednesday, April 8, CUC will host North Central College for a 2:30 pm start. Finally on Saturday, April 11, the Cougars will host Marian. First pitch will be at 12:00 pm.
 
Men's Tennis (1-12, 1-2)
The Cougars continued NACC play this week.
 
CUC faced Illinois Tech and fell 7-0. The duo of Kyle Pelzek (Hales Corner, Wis.) and Kevin Bullens (River Forest, Ill.) posted the strongest score at No. 3 doubles, falling 6-2. Five of six Cougars picked up points in at least one of their singles sets in Collin Dickey (Frisco, Texas), Reynaldo Leal (Weslaco, Texas), August Barnes (Sodus, Mich.), Sam Smith (Munster, Ind.) and Andres Villagran (El Paso, Texas). They would all fall, 6-0, 6-1.
 
This week, the Cougars will play four matches. On Tuesday, April 7, CUC will play Wheaton College on the road at 2:00 pm. Then on Friday, April 10, CUC will host Olivet Nazarene University at 2:00 pm. NACC play resumes on Saturday, April 11. The Cougars travel to Mequon, Wis. to face Concordia University Wisconsin (CUW) at 10:00 am. Finally, on Sunday, April 12, CUC hosts SNC at 12:00 pm.
 
Women's Tennis (1-15, 1-7)
The women's tennis team will host Olivet Nazarene on Friday, April 10, at 10:00 am.
 
Dance
The Cougars will host a Nationals Showcase on Tuesday, April 7, at 6:00 pm in Geiseman Gymnasium. Then, it's off to the NDA College Dance Nationals in Daytona Beach, Fla. The preliminary rounds will be held on Saturday, April 11, with the finals on Sunday, April 12.
 
Esports
The Overwatch team competed in the first round of the NECC playoffs.
 
The Cougars faced No. 3 Waynesburg University and fell 3-2. On the first map, the Cougars made a miraculous effort to win 100-99, after being down 99-0. In the second stage of the first game, the Cougars maintained control the entire game, taking game one, 2-0. Connor Lewandowski (West Dundee, Ill.) came in clutch with a five-man fight to spark the comeback while Connor Bleazard (Saint Joseph, Mo.) had perfect synergy to assist with the perfect follow-up. In game two, it was all about the playmaking from Luis Cortes (Maywood, Ill.) and Ephraim Fisher (Yorkville, Ill.), whose perfect use of their heroes made it impossible for Waynesburg to find its footing. CUC controlled the pace the whole game, taking it 3-0 and leading the series 2-0. Waynesburg would not go down without a fight, taking game three, 1-0, despite solid efforts from Oscar Buitimea (Chicago, Ill.) and Bleazard. In game four, it was a back-and-forth battle. The Cougars started strong, surging to an early lead in Push, creating a 105-55 lead heading into the last two minutes of the game. Unfortunately, one mistake was all it took for Waynesburg to seize control and rally to win game four, 110-105.  In game five, the Cougars struggled to get on the board and fell 1-0 in game, losing the match 3-2. CUC now waits to see if they have enough points to make a bid for nationals.
 
You can keep up with all things CUC Athletics on Twitter @CUChicagoSports, watch all the action at cucougars.com/coverage, and view all photos from the seasons here.