PITTSBURGH, Pa. - April 16, 2023 - Chatham Baseball split its two home games against the Bethany Bison on Sunday. The Cougars are now 13-15 on the season and 6-8 in the PAC. 13 total wins on the season matches a program best, which was set last year.

In the first game, Chatham opened the scoring with a run in the first inning, but found themselves in a deep hole when Bethany scored three in the third and six in the fifth to take a 9-1 lead. The Cougars would storm back, however, Sophomore first baseman Quinn Burke, sophomore catcher Tyler Cote and first year outfielder Peter Tadic all hit RBI doubles in the sixth to make the game 9-4. After a Bethany homer that extended the lead to seven, Chatham responded with a six spot in the bottom of the seventh, including a two-run double with the bases loaded. from junior outfielder Dylan Vogel. The Cougars then tied the game in the eighth with a single from Burke that drove in graduate catcher Caleb Lehman. The game would need extra innings, but Chatham ultimately could not complete the comeback, as the Bison scored two in the 11th frame and secured the win.

The Cougars had 20 hits in game one, which is a new program record, beating the previous mark of 19, which was set on March 21, 2021 against Franciscan.

Junior infielder Benny Dottle was 3-7 with two RBI Cote and Tadic were each 2-3 with two RBI. Cote, who started the game as the designated hitter, came in to pitch in the eighth inning and threw 2.0 scoreless innings of relief.

In the second matchup, things looked very similar. Chatham scored first in the opening inning, but Bethany once again followed with a sizeable lead. The Bison put up three in the second and two in the third to grab a 5-1 advantage. Graduate outfielder Nico Cuello hit his second homer on the season to make it 5-2 in the bottom of the third. In the fourth, Burke tripled to score senior third baseman Brandon Griener, then Cote drove in Burke with a base knock. Lehman scored two with a double in the fifth to give the Cougars a 6-5 lead. The one run lead again did not last long, as two runs in the sixth followed by a four-run seventh for the Bison made it 11-6. Chatham, who failed to complete game one's comeback, gave it another shot, scoring six in the bottom of the seventh, including back-to-back home runs from Griener and Burke. The game stood at 12-12 after Bethany tied things in the eighth. In the bottom of the ninth, the Cougars successfully completed game two's comeback as Griener scored on a Bison throwing error to walk it off.

Cuello and Griener each had three hits and three runs scored in the second game. Dottle, who started the game at shortshop, threw 2.0 scoreless innings in his first pitching appearence of the season and earned the win.

Baseball is back at West Field on Thursday evening with a contest against Oberlin College.