GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Cornerstone looked dominant in Thursday afternoon action from De Witt Field. CU finished off Cleary 7-4 in game one, then knocked off the Cougars 12-2 in a mercy rule victory after seven innings of play. Austin Hurt broke the single-season RBI record on a two-run home run in game one. That moves Hurt to 44 RBI on the season, breaking the single-season record of 41 that Hurt set last year. Landon Poll also had a big day at the dish as he delivered four big RBI for the Golden Eagles in game two. CU pitching was dominant outside of two innings in the 14 total innings in the double header, with Grant Young picking up the win in game one and Dylan VandenBerg getting the W in game two. After the sweep of Cleary, Cornerstone moves to 19-17 overall, 11-6 in the WHAC.

Game One: Cornerstone – 7 | Cleary – 4

• George Cutler got things going early for the Golden Eagles when a sacrifice fly to left field in the bottom of the second brought Isaac Tayes home. That gave CU a 1-0 lead.
• JC Salinas went yard for Cornerstone in the bottom of the third with a 3 RBI shot to right field. His rope brought Isaac Tayes and Jake Collins across the plate, extending the Cornerstone lead to 4-0.
• In the bottom of the fifth, Austin Hurt set the single-season RBI record on a two-run home run to extend the CU lead to 6-0. That round bagger brought Hurt's RBI count to 43 in the 2022 campaign.
• Cleary made some noise in the top of the sixth after a pair of doubles brought home two runs apiece, cutting the Cornerstone lead to 6-4.
• The Golden Eagles got help from George Cutler when he hit a second sacrifice fly, bringing JC Salinas home to give CU a 7-4 lead.
• That would be it for the scoring as Ben Cunningham came in for the save, shutting down Cleary, giving Cornerstone a 7-4 win in game one of the double header.

Game Two: Cornerstone – 12 | Cleary – 2

• Cleary got off to a strong start in game two after a single drove in a run, then a sacrifice fly brought home another, giving the Cougars a 2-0 lead in the top of the first.
• Cornerstone evened up the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the second after Landon Poll hit a double down the right field line.
• The bats were quiet for a couple innings before the Golden Eagles lit up the scoreboard again. 
• In the bottom of the fifth, Jake Collins hit a solo shot off the wrestling building in right center to give Cornerstone a 3-2 lead.
• The Golden Eagles scored again when JC Salinas laid down a beautiful bunt, getting Austin Hurt across the plate for a 4-2 CU lead.
• Continuing the attack in the bottom of the fifth, George Cutler hit a monster double down the left field line adding two more runs, extending the Cornerstone lead to 6-2.
• Cornerstone continued their scoring attack in the bottom of the sixth when a bases loaded error by the third baseman allowed Trenton Gilman to score.
• Then, Isaac Tayes hit a sacrifice fly to center field, bringing a Jordan Wenzel home to give the Golden Eagles an 8-2 lead.
• After that, a JC Salinas RBI single and a 2 RBI double by Landon Poll put CU up 11-2 after a dominant five-run sixth inning.
• To finish things off, Isaac Tayes hit a monster double to left field, bring Jake Collins across the plate, giving Cornerstone a 12-2 win via mercy rule to complete the sweep over Cleary.

By the Numbers:
12 – Strikeouts by CU pitchers, led by Dylan VandenBerg with six.
5 – Doubles on the day for the Golden Eagles. Landon Poll and Isaac Tayes had two apiece. 
44 – RBI by Austin Hurt, a new single season record for Cornerstone baseball. Hurt had three in today's contests.
 
What's Next?
Cornerstone hits the diamond again for a home twin bill on Saturday, April 23 when they host Rochester. First pitch for game one is set for 1 p.m. with game two slated for approximately 3 p.m.
 
Baseball Contact: Jesse Campbell 
CU Athletics: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
Baseball: Twitter | Facebook