East Peoria, Ill. - On a near-perfect weather day, the ICC baseball team (16-25, 10-12) was back home at Thome Field on Friday afternoon to take on Spoon River in the opening half of their MWAC series against the Snappers. The Cougars had won the season series a year ago 3-1, and were looking to build on that in 2023. Build on that, they would. All the while holding the Snappers to three hits for the full day, they'd also shutout the visitors in both games, winning by scores of 8-0 and 3-0. The day was highlighted by Gage Burdick's efforts on the mound in game two, when the freshman through a no-hitter. 

GAME 1 - ICC COUGARS 8, SPOON RIVER 0
The Cougars got off to a quick start in the first game of the day, with Luke Doty and Josh Heyder both tallying RBI hits to take a 2-0 lead after just an inning.

Nick Hainline was holding things down on the mound, keeping Spoon River scoreless as ICC chipped away at an increasing lead. A two-run single from Heyder was part of a three-run second to expand the score to 5-0 after two.

Doty continued his efforts in the run column by lining an RBI double into the outfield to bring around both Camden Porter and Riley McCallister. A fourth-inning home run from Kaleb Gauf set the 8-0 final score before both teams went scoreless in the game's final three innings. 

It wasn't just the home run, as Gauf joined Doty and Heyder for the Cougars' hitting lead with each of the trio finishing with two hits. Hainline struck out nine in his seven innings of work, with three hits and a pair of walks the only baserunners. 

GAME 2 - ICC COUGARS 3, SPOON RIVER 0
Now, the ICC bats maybe didn't finish with quite as many runs as they did in the first game, it was still a well-rounded performance from coach Brett Kelley's crew. 

That being said, game two did give off the same overall dynamic. The Cougars would score all three of their runs within the game's first three innings. 

Tyler Hansen would get the scoring with an RBI single in the first. Luke Doty rolled his performance from game one and turned it into another RBI hit in game two for a 2-0 ICC lead in the third. Jackson Powell added a sacrifice fly to score Doty and set the 3-0 final. 

Now, amidst that run-scoring was a gem from Gage Burdick on the mound. One hit batter, and a few walks spread over the course of the outing - that was it. The fifth and sixth innings both saw the freshman retire the Snappers in 1-2-3 fashion. 

Then, with the no-hitter on the line in the seventh, a walk and wild pitch put a potential run into scoring position. Alas, that would be all that would come of the Snappers in the final frame. A groundout put the game one out away, and Matt Evans caught a fly ball out in right field to secure the milestone outing for Burdick and a 3-0 win for the Cougars. 

Hansen led the Cougars at the plate with three hits. Hunter Thornton had a two-hit game as well. In Burdick's no-hitter, he struck out 12.

WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE COUGARS
ICC will return the favor and head to Canton tomorrow to conclude their MWAC series with a Spoon River doubleheader starting at 10AM.