Baseball Recap: Vernon Hills Comes Up Short

Cougars

Previous 5 Games

04/28/25 @ Niles West	2-10
04/24/25 @ Maine East	12-5
04/22/25 vs Maine East	10-0
04/21/25 @ Maine East	16-5
04/19/25 vs Niles North	1-7

Vernon Hills dropped their record down to 7-13 on Monday, which also ended the team's three-game streak of wins. They came up short against the Niles West Wolves, falling 10-2. The Cougars were red-hot at the plate heading into the matchup (they scored no less than ten runs in the three games prior), but the Wolves' pitchers proved too tough.

Vernon Hills saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Nate Dugan, who went 1-for-3 with one run.

As for Niles West, they have been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 9-12 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.0 runs over those games.

On Niles West's side, Yacoub Rayan spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered just two earned runs on four hits and racked up ten Ks. Rayan has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive appearances.

On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Eli Ordower, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with three RBI, two runs, and two doubles. Those two doubles gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Lucas Som, who got on base in three of his five plate appearances with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.

While Vernon Hills had to take the loss, they won't have to wait long to give it another shot: the pair's next game is a rematch scheduled at 4:45 p.m. on Tuesday.