CLEVELAND, GA. -- The University of Saint Francis (Ind.) Cougars took on the Truett-McConnell University Bears Friday afternoon to wrap up the series after taking a 2-0 lead on Thursday. They battled hard through the first game with some great pitching but fell short 3-2.

Blaine McRae gave the team a gritty performance by limiting the Bears to 1 run. The Cougars scored 1 on some defensive mistakes and the score remained 1-1 until the fifth inning. With some great situational baseball, they were able to take the lead 2-1. The Bears responded and took a 1-run lead into the final two innings. The Cougs couldn't string together at-bats and took their first loss of the season 3-2.

The second game was all Cougars as they dominated by a score of 16-2. The game started off with a bang with a leadoff homerun from Xavier Nolan. He came through again in the second inning with two more RBIs to put the Cougs up 3-0 early. Deron Swanson absolutely mowed down the Bears offensive attack and kept the momentum rolling on the defensive side. The offensive attack continued into the third where they put up 5 more runs to give them an 8-0 lead. In the fifth, the Cougars scored six more with RBIs from Brenden Lytle, Xavier Croxton, and a 3-run homerun from Sam Pesa. This allowed the Cougars to get some of their depth in and allow for experience from the young guys.

There were many key contributors from the Cougars. This includes Deron Swanson who went 5 innings pitched, with 1 hit, and gave up no runs. Also, Xavier Nolan with a homerun, 4 RBIs, and 3 stolen bases. The Cougars are now 3-1 and will travel down to Pineville, Louisiana to play Louisiana Christian University and Southern University of New Orleans. They play two 9-inning games against each team on February 16^th and 17^th.

Cougar fans stay updated with all events and recaps with USF Athletics by visiting saintfranciscougars.com or by downloading the Saint Francis Cougars app.

- Sam Pesa -