SARAH YORO | staff writer
photo courtesy | APU ATHLETICS
APU's leadoff hitter and senior shortstop Matt Venegas homored for the Cougars on only the second pitch of the 2008 season.


For a combined total of 60 at-bats, five home runs and 20 RBIs, the NAIA’s No. 2-ranked Cougars brought the heat against the Patten Lions in a doubleheader of seven-inning contests last Thursday. APU defeated the Lions in a clean sweep of 5-1 and 17-5.

Although the score and statistics of both games do not reflect it, APU did have their moments of vulnerability. In the first inning of the second game, the Cougars’ confidence level began to drop. A Patten runner pummeled sophomore catcher Javier Ochoa in the knee on his way to home plate, allowing the Lions to score two of their three runs for that inning.

“Everyone was worried about Javier. We all knew he was in pain,” head coach Paul Svagdis said.

While the athletic trainers tended to Ochoa’s injury, Svagdis brought his men together for a brief pep talk, encouraging them to keep at it. As a result, it was the turning point of the game.

Once the game resumed, the Cougars quickly countered the Lions, scoring four runs by the end of the first for the steal. Four Cougars scored a run.

When faced with adversity, the Cougars revealed their character and mental strength by overcoming it.

“Just to see the guys refocus on the game and get back into it the way they did, I thought was really good mental toughness,” Svagdis said.

Two pitches into the first 2008 at-bat for the Cougars, Venegas drilled the ball over the right-field fence, earning a solo homerun as a leadoff hitter.

As one of the team leaders, Venegas hopes to build off last year’s successful season.

“Basically, we’re just trying to go with the same thing that our seniors last year did—work hard in practice and try to do the right things off the field,” Venegas said. “When we play, we just leave it on the field and let the results handle themselves.”

Venegas wasn’t the only player who went deep in the first game. Junior outfielders Nieuwenhuis and Drew Evans each contributed with a home run.

Starting on the mound, junior right-handed pitcher Garrett Hodges maintained five no-hit innings where he encountered 17 batters and struck out five of them.

In the top of the fifth inning, a Patten hit struck Hodges in the right hand, leaving him out for the rest of the game.

In the second game, during the bottom of the second, junior left fielder Stephen Gillette hit a grand slam to right center field, handing the Cougars command of the scoreboard, 8-3. He wrapped up the game 4-for-5 with three runs and six RBIs.

Kohatsu went 1-for-3 in each game while sophomore first baseman Chris Feicht went 4-for-8 with three doubles.

Svagdis commented on the middle line-up and their ability to produce. He said they did not have a drop off through the first two games.

“It was good to see them step up in that situation. I think getting production in the bottom of the order is good,” Svagdis said. “We’re hoping that on any given day that someone in our lineup is going to produce.”