PITTSBURGH, Pa. – March 26, 2022 – In a combined seven hours and 21 minutes of baseball, Chatham ended up on the short end of a sweep at the hands of Westminster. The Titans won game one 14-7 and game two 18-17, putting Chatham's record at 6-5 overall and 0-2 in PAC play.
 
Things did not start Chatham's way in the first two innings, surrendering four and five runs in the first and second frames, respectively. The Cougars used two pitchers for each of the innings, with sophomore Dominic Costellic starting and taking the loss, followed by sophomore Mason Schwartz.
 
The Cougars rallied in the second for a huge six spot to cut the deficit from nine to just three. It started with an RBI single by sophomore Dylan Vogel, then senior Nico Cuello cleared the bases with a two-RBI triple. Junior Brandon Griener and first-year Tyler Cote each singled to bring in a run each, then a bases loaded walk by first-year Quinn Burke capped off the scoring in the second.
 
The Cougar bats went silent until the seventh inning. Westminster got a two-RBI double in the third to extend the lead to 13-6, then an additional run came across in the fifth with two more in the seventh. Vogel singled to bring home the final run of the game but was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double to end the game.
 
Chatham was outhit 14-9 for the game. Cuello led the way with a pair of base hits, both extra bases with a double and triple. Burke had another double, Vogel and Griener each with two hits.
 
The longest outing on the hill for the Cougars in game one was from first-year Drew Schreck, going 3.0 innings. He was followed by a pair of first years making their debuts in a Cougar uniform, with Dawson Morrow and David McSorley each lasting an inning to conclude the first game.
 
After retiring the Titans 1-2-3 to begin game two, Chatham wasted little time getting on the board. It had three straight RBI singles by Griener, Cote and first-year Brady Wingeart to go up 3-0 after one. Westminster evened the game in the top of the third, but the Cougars held off Westminster in the bottom half with Cote singling a run, Burke getting hit by a pitch with the bases juiced, a fielder's choice and finally a SAC fly by first-year Sam Helton.
 
After a scoreless fourth, Westminster drew even in the fifth thanks to a double, single, wild pitch and throwing error. It was the second of five ties forced throughout the game. An RBI triple by senior Luke Paulson put the Cougars ahead once again, with Helton popping up the ninth run.
 
After a brief weather delay, Westminster tied the game in the sixth and then took the lead in the seventh inning on a SAC fly. The Cougars once again found an answer, four of them to be exact. Cuello walked with the bases loaded, senior Caleb Lehman sacrified the go-ahead run, and then Griener cleared the bases with a two-RBI double to go up 13-10.
 
Chatham had the advantage after seven, but the wheels fell off in the top of the eighth when Westminster crossed the plate eight times to go ahead 18-13. Chatham made a late rally, with one in the eighth off a wild pitch and three in the ninth. First-year Anthony Sciulli got a pinch-hit RBI single, Wingeart then sacrificed, and first-year Logan Smith scored on a passed ball. The tying run was left stranded 90 feet away to finish the game.
 
It was a hitting parade for both teams, with Chatham lacing 16 base hits. However, the Cougars were undone by four errors, which turned out to be a big deciding factor. It was also tied for the highest scoring game in program history. Griener went 4/5 with three runs, three RBI's and two doubles, Vogel had three base hits including the triple, while Cote, Wingeart and Paulson had a pair of knocks.
 
Junior Eric Paulin started and went 4.0 innings, striking out five Titans. He was followed by senior Mason Akers who pitched 2.0 innings, then first-year Kole Mayle went 1.1 innings with a pair of strikeouts. Cote took the loss on the bump, while junior JJ Shibest finished the final 1.1 innings and struck out three of five batters.
 
The Cougars travel to Washington & Jefferson for a PAC double header on Tuesday, March 29 starting at 2:00.