Galesburg, Ill. - The Illinois Central College baseball team (18-22, 13-7) had a midweek road trip on their hands with a small trek up and over to the Bill Hungate Complex for a battle against the Carl Sandburg Chargers of Region 4. A frequent fall ball opponent of the Cougars, this would be the first of two scheduled times for the two programs to meet up. Wednesday was a wild one, with the Cougars and Chargers combining for 24 runs and 29 hits, but all in all, a 15-9 ICC winner. 

ICC COUGARS 15, CARL SANDBURG 9
The Cougars stormed out to a 5-0 lead after two and a half innings, getting Riley McCallister scoring off an error, a Luke Doty RBI double, Griffin Roesch scoring on a passed ball, Kyle Mack drawing a bases-loaded walk, and Roesch scoring on a fielder's choice. Amidst all that, Broker Bailey was holding things down on the mound, retiring the game's first seven batters for Carl Sandburg. 

The Chargers would respond, getting a two-run third to pull within 5-2, but the Cougars tacked on four more in the bottom of the fourth, adding a Jacob Castleman RBI single, Noah Campbell scoring on an error, and a two-run single from Eli Boeye to lead by seven. 

ICC's offense wasn't done yet, either. A two-run fifth by way of another two-run single from Boeye made it an eight-run lead at 11-3. Carl Sandburg turned the tide with perhaps their best offensive stretch of the game, scoring four runs in unanswered fashion, pulling within 'grand slam run range' at 11-7. 

While to this point of the game, it had been a few half innings of run-scoring surges, both teams would chip away at the run column. The Cougars' best inning the rest of the way came in the top of the eighth, when an Ashton Horchem double and Bryce Bishop walk set up a Tom Verran RBI single. Campbell being hit by a pitch would set the table for a Jacob Castleman bases-loaded RBI walk to double up the Chargers at 14-7 after seven and a half. 

ICC capped their offensive performance when Nate Bartman scored on a wild pitch, making it a 15-8 game into the bottom of the ninth. Carl Sandburg would tack on one last run in the bottom of the ninth on an RBI sacrifice fly to set the final score. 

COUGARS BATTING
Luke Doty | 1 double, 2 RBI, 1 walk, 1 stolen base
Bryce Bishop | 1 walk
Kyle Mack | 1 double, 1 walk
Tom Verran | 1 single, 1 RBI
Noah Campbell | 2 singles, 2 hit by pitches
Jacob Castleman | 3 singles, 2 RBI, 1 walk
Jake Stewart | 1 double, 1 RBI, 2 walks
Blake Norton | 1 single
Eli Boeye | 2 singles, 4 RBI, 1 walk, 1 stolen base
Griffin Roesch | 1 single, 1 walk, 2 stolen bases
Nate Bartman | 1 single, 1 RBI, 1 walk
Elliot Seckman | 2 singles, 1 walk
Ashton Horchem | 1 double, 1 walk, 1 stolen base

COUGARS PITCHING
Broker Bailey | 3 innings, 4 hits, 1 earned run, 0 walks, 4 strikeouts
Kyle Miller | 1 inning, 1 hit, 1 earned run, 0 walks, 1 strikeout
Billy Mini | 1 inning, 2 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, 1 strikeout
Brody Palmer | 1 inning, 3 hits, 3 earned runs, 1 walk, 1 strikeout
Chase Martin | 1 inning, 0 hits, 0 earned runs, 2 walks, 1 strikeout
Blake Norton | 1 inning, 3 hits, 1 earned run, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts
Ian McGhiey | 1 inning, 1 hit, 1 earned run, 0 walks, 1 strikeout

WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE COUGARS
vs. John Wood Blazers (17-28, 6-18)
Saturday, April 20th - 1:00 / 4:00 PM
Thome Field - East Peoria, Illinois