Cougars come home after slam ends 1-7 road trip

The Kane County Cougars finished a long road trip Monday night against the Peoria Chiefs and suffered perhaps their most agonizing loss of the season, dropping an 11-7 final in front of 5,135 at O'Brien Field after a grand slam in the bottom of the 11th inning.

The Cougars had tied the game with a two-run rally in the ninth but ended up with their sixth consecutive loss and a 1-7 record on the trip. They were swept in a four-game series for the first time since May 2007.

Every time the Cougars mustered something offensively Peoria had an answer. The Cougars scored twice in the opening inning, but the Chiefs scored three times. Later Todd Johnson tied the game, 5-5, in the seventh with a two-run homer but Nick Walters and Justin Friend each gave up one in the bottom half to make it a 7-5 deficit.

Then Corey Brown smashed a solo homer in the top of the ninth, and Greg Dowling brought in pinch-runner Shane Keough with a two-out double to extend the game. After the Cougars stranded the bases loaded in the top of the 11th, reliever Brent Lysander (1-2), who rejoined the team from Short-A Vancouver before the game, surrendered the grand slam to the Chiefs' Jovan Rosa. Craig Muschko (3-2) notched the win.

The Cougars (4-8) now return home to face the Burlington Bees (8-4) on Tuesday night at 6:30 p.m. Brad Hertzler (1-2, 3.83) will oppose Danny Gutierrez (1-1, 2.53).