GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Golden Eagles struggled in their home opener today allowing Madonna to score 24 total runs, falling 12-7 in game one and 12-1 in game two. With the losses, Cornerstone is now 8-15 on the year and 1-3 in WHAC play and they have now lost three straight games. CU will have a chance to get their first home wins on Friday when they continue WHAC play against Cleary University starting at 1 p.m. Stay tuned to cugoldeneagles.com for potential schedule changes due to weather conditions.
Game One
- Both starting pitchers got off to a good start in the Golden Eagles home opener as Daniel Abbgy and Donovan Thacker combined to allow just four hits and no runs through the first two innings.
- After an error in the inning, Madonna found the scoreboard scoring three runs in the top of the fourth including an RBI single from Nick Sykes to take a 3-0 lead.
- A dropped foul ball in the top of the fifth proved costly for the Golden Eagles as well allowing Madonna to score two more runs and take a 5-0 lead.
- Cornerstone got on the board in the bottom of the fifth after a Jarod Burton RBI single that scored Austin Hurt to cut the deficit to 5-1.
- The Golden Eagles chipped away at the lead in the bottom of the sixth, as Joe Corsten would score on a wild pitch and Aaron Krupansky hit a sacrifice fly to score Austin Hurt cutting the deficit to 5-3.
- After two more errors in the top of the seventh, Madonna took advantage scoring five runs in the inning to lead 10-3.
- CU got to the Crusaders bullpen in the bottom of the seventh and scored two runs off the reliever on a two RBI double from Eric Bradberry cutting the deficit to 10-5.
- Back-to-back hits from Dustin DeBeau and Aaron Krupansky helped two more come in and score to cut the deficit back to three.
- Madonna immediately got two runs back though in the top of the eighth with a two RBI double to go back on top by five at 12-7.
- CU could only find one baserunner in the final two innings as they were unable to complete a comeback falling 12-7.
Game Two
- Madonna got off to a fast start in game two, scoring three runs in the top of the first inning including a two RBI double from Jalen Thomas.
- Starter Jon Martin pitched just 1.1 innings before being forced out of the game and relieved by Chandler McKinney.
- Madonna scored four more runs in the top of the second highlighted by a Jalen Thomas two run bomb to lead 7-0.
- CU found their first run of the game on a Trenton Gilman RBI double in the bottom of the second that scored Brandon Hepp to cut the deficit to 7-1.
- An RBI single by the catcher Zachary Beedle allowed the Crusaders to increase their lead to 8-1 in the third.
- Andrew VanDyke came in to pitch in the fourth and held MU scoreless for the first time in the game.
- VanDyke did not have the same success in the fifth as the Crusaders added four more runs highlighted by a Noah Renaud RBI triple to lead 12-1.
- Alan LaBov and Brandon Bush each came in for an inning of work and shut down the Crusaders from there, but the offense could not get going resulting in a 12-1 loss in seven innings for the Golden Eagles in game two.
By the Numbers
5-6 – Senior
Brandon Hepp was the only Golden Eagle to standout at the plate today, going 5-6 with three hits in game one and two in game two.
11 – Madonna successfully stole 11 bases on the day, six of those coming in their game two victory.
14 – CU tied their season high with 14 hits in game one against Madonna.
5 – The Golden Eagles committed five errors on the day, four of those in game one.
What's Next?
Cornerstone will continue home action with a double-header vs. Cleary University on Friday starting at 1 p.m.
Baseball Contact: Jesse Campbell
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