RIVER FOREST, Ill. – The Concordia University Wisconsin baseball team opened NACC play with a doubleheader sweep of Concordia University Chicago on Saturday. The Falcons combined for 31 runs and 35 hits across the two victories.
 
The sweep marks the first time CUW has taken a series from CUC since the 2018 season, though the Cougars still lead the all-time series 32-14.
 
Game 1 | Concordia Wisconsin 8, Concordia Chicago 5
The Falcons pulled away late to secure an 8-5 victory in the opener after the game was tied 5-5 heading into the ninth inning.
 
Three of CUW's runs came via solo home runs from senior Matt Miller (Fredonia, Wis.), sophomore Graham Kasten (Mequon, Wis.), and sophomore Colyn Lessila. The long balls marked the first home runs of the season for both Miller and Lessila.
 
The Falcons broke the tie in the top of the ninth. Junior Connor Lasch (Chicago, Ill.) led off the inning with a double to left field on the first pitch he saw. Junior Luke Heinkel (Brookfield, Wis.) followed with another double to score Lasch and give CUW the lead. Freshman Jameson Dick (Chesapeake, Va.) entered as a pinch runner for Heinkel and moved to third on a wild pitch.
 
Later in the inning, junior Jason Valdez (Glendale Heights, Ill.) walked and stole second before Lessila delivered an RBI single through the left side to score Dick and move Valdez to third. Senior Brandon McCray (Corona, Calif.) followed with a single to center field that plated Valdez and extended the Falcons' lead to 8-5.
 
The Falcons sealed the win in the bottom of the ninth. After a leadoff walk, the CUW defense turned a double play before Valdez secured the final out in center field.
 
Miller and Lessila each recorded two hits and two RBIs to lead the Falcons offensively, while Lasch and McCray also added two hits.
 
Senior Nick Barksdale (Walnut Creek, Calif.) started on the mound for CUW, pitching seven innings while striking out five and walking three. Freshman Jackson Kobylarczyk (Jackson, Wis.) worked the eighth inning, and senior Tyler Bartczak (Crestwood, Ill.) pitched the ninth. Kobylarczyk earned his first collegiate win to move to 1-0 on the season, while Bartczak picked up his second save.
 
Game 2 | Concordia Wisconsin 23, Concordia Chicago 8
The Falcons' offense stayed hot in game two, erupting for 23 runs on 23 hits. It marks the most runs scored by CUW since a 29-run performance against Hamline at the Tucson Invitational Games in March 2023.
 
The game was tied 3-3 through three innings before the Falcons began to pull away in the fourth.
 
After RBI singles from Graham Kasten and Connor Lasch, along with a run scored on a Cougar error, freshman Jack Anzelmo (Appleton, Wis.) delivered a two-run home run over the left-field fence—his sixth of the season.
 
CUW broke the game open in the fifth inning with eight runs. The Falcons quickly loaded the bases and scored on a walk and a wild pitch to take a 10-3 lead. Another walk forced a pitching change for the Cougars, and Lasch followed with a sacrifice fly to drive in another run.
 
After Anzelmo singled to load the bases again, junior Luke Heinkel (Brookfield, Wis.) delivered a two-run single. Matt Miller followed with a single of his own, and with the help of a CUC error two more runs scored. Alex Ames capped the inning with an RBI single to right field, pushing the Falcons' lead to 16-3.
 
The Falcons added seven more runs in the sixth inning. A trio of singles from freshman Dylan Hein (Dyer, Ind.), Colyn Lessila, and freshman Joe Landgraf (Hartford, Wis.) drove in four runs before freshman Mick Vagner (Crown Point, Ind.) capped the inning with a three-run home run to center field—his second homer of the season—extending the lead to 23-4.
 
Concordia Chicago scored four runs over the final innings, but the deficit proved too large to overcome.
 
Ames went a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate to lead the Falcons, while Anzelmo and Lessila also recorded three hits. Vagner, sophomore Brady Coons (Kimberly, Wis.), and Jameson Dick each added doubles.
 
Freshman Easton Oliver (West Bend, Wis.) started for the Falcons and earned the win after pitching 4.1 innings and facing 23 batters. Classmates Nolan Sand (Mishicot, Wis.) and Jack Gulley (Cypress, Texas) combined to pitch the final 2.2 innings in relief. Oliver remains undefeated on the season at 2-0.
 
CUW returns to the diamond Tuesday for its home opener against Carthage in the team's final nonconference game of the season. First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m. at Kapco Park.