Springfield, IL - The Illinois Central College Baseball team (6-16, 1-5) hit the road to Claude Kracik Field to resume MWAC play on Saturday afternoon by taking on the Lincoln Land Loggers (12-9, 5-5). Lincoln Land would bring the bats in both games, combining for 31 runs and 34 hits on the day for a doubleheader sweep by scores of 18-10 and 13-3 (5 innings). 

GAME ONE | LINCOLN LAND 18, ILLINOIS CENTRAL 10
The opener on the day got off to a quick start. Kaiden Lucero scored on a passed ball to take an early 1-0 lead. 

Lincoln Land put up a crooked number in their half, with an RBI sacrifice fly, a pair of RBI singles, and another run scoring on a throw on the latter of the two singles, all adding up to a 4-1 lead after just an inning. 

After the Loggers had added one more, the Cougars made a big push in the third inning, using an RBI double from Thomas Krueger and two-run single from Ryan Brucker to pull within a run at 5-4. 

ICC completed the comeback for the interim when Krueger roped an RBI double into center field to score Lucero and tie it up at five runs apiece with three and a half innings in the books. 

Another big inning for Lincoln Land saw the Loggers got an RBI double, two-run single, run on an error, and an RBI single to surge ahead at 11-5. 

Jayden Malone would score on a fielder's choice in the fifth to make it a five-run game (11-6), but that margin would be as close as the Cougars got. 

Back-to-back RBI hits from Chris Casey (double) and Nate Bartman (single) got the game to a 15-9 score. 

One last time, ICC cut it to a five-run margin when Jake Stewart lined an RBI double out to left field and made it 15-10 after the top of the eighth. 

Lincoln Land scored three more runs to ice it - an RBI single, a run scoring on the throw, and an RBI single to set the final margin. 

COUGAR HITTING
Kaiden Lucero (CF) | 2 singles, 1 walk
Thomas Krueger (3B) | 1 single, 2 doubles, 2 RBI
Ryan Brucker (DH) | 1 single, 1 double, 2 RBI
Jayden Malone (RF) | 2 singles, 1 double, 1 RBI
Kyle Binder (C) | 1 single
Jake Stewart (1B) | 1 single, 1 double, 1 RBI
David Ripke (2B) | 1 RBI
Jace Easley | 1 single
Elliot Seckman (LF) | 2 walks
Chris Casey | 1 double, 1 RBI
Nate Bartman (SS) | 1 single, 1 double, 1 RBI

COUGAR PITCHING
Caleb Bieneman (L) | 3 innings, 8 hits, 8 earned runs, 7 walks, 2 strikeouts
Caleb Diver | 2 innings, 6 hits, 4 earned runs, 1 walk, 3 strikeouts
Tyler Sabador | 1.2 innings, 4 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, 1 strikeout
Eli Wang | 1 inning, 4 hits, 4 earned runs, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts

GAME TWO | LINCOLN LAND 13, ILLINOIS CENTRAL 3
The Cougars got to the scoreboard first in the second game of the day by way of an RBI single from Jayden Malone. 

A three-run second and one-run third from the Loggers put the hosts ahead 4-1, but in the fourth, Connor Patton had an RBI single and Nate Bartman had an RBI single to make it a one-run game at 4-3. 

ICC got one hit in the fifth, a Thomas Krueger single, but that was it the rest of the way. 

Lincoln Land shot out of a cannon in the bottom of the fifth, with an RBI single, RBI double, RBI single, error, two-run double, and two-run single ending the game early. 

COUGAR HITTING
Thomas Krueger (3B) | 2 singles
Ryan Brucker (DH) | 1 single, 1 walk
Jayden Malone (RF) | 1 single, 1 double, 1 RBI
Jake Stewart (1B) | 1 single
Connor Patton (LF) | 1 single, 1 RBI
Nate Bartman (SS) | 1 RBI

COUGAR PITCHING
Kaiser Quick (L) | 3 innings, 4 hits, 4 earned runs, 3 walks, 5 strikeouts
Billy Mini | 1.2 innings, 6 hits, 4 earned runs, 0 walks, 3 strikeouts
Wyatt Jacek | 5 batters, 3 hits, 4 earned runs, 2 walks, 0 strikeouts

WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE COUGARS
vs. Lincoln Land Loggers (12-9, 5-5)
Monday, March 24th - 3:00 PM (DH)
at Thome Field - East Peoria, IL
Watch Live (AWRE TV)
Live Stats (GameChanger; "25 ICC Cougars Baseball")