DAVENPORT, Fla. – The Golden Eagles took on a tough receiving votes Point Park squad to open the 2023 season in Davenport, Florida and fell in an offensive shootout and fell again in a pitcher's duel to drop to 0-2. CU lost game one 16-8 and then fell in game two 3-0 in a game they did not record a base runner until the sixth inning. Cornerstone has a day off tomorrow before they return to Northeast Region Park to take on Grand View for a double-header on the first day of March. 

Game One – #RV Point Park – 16 Cornerstone – 8

• Point Park got off to a fast start with a leadoff double from Carlos Martinez off starter Dylan VandenBerg. Martinez would later score on a sacrifice fly to make it 1-0. With two outs the Pioneers would add another run on an RBI truble from Isaac Santana to take an early 2-0 edge. 
• In the bottom of the first, Jake Collins would draw a two out walk. George Cutler was next and would rope one to shortstop, but an outstanding play by Carlos Martinez prevented the hit, keeping the score 2-0. 
• In the second inning, Carlos Burroughs got some help from the wind to hit an opposite field solo home run to make it 3-0 Point Park. 
• Landon Poll and Grant Young drew back-to-back walks to lead-off the bottom of the second. As starter Adam Zulka continued to struggle with strikes, he would be subbed out for Jose Moreno in the middle of Matthew Kindley's first career at bat. On the first pitch Kindley saw from the new pitcher, he tripled to drive in two and put Cornerstone within a run. 
• A Samuel Bussler RBI single later in the inning would tie the game at 3-3 as Matthew Kindley came in to score.
• In the top of the third errors would help Point Park get the lead right back as Jordon Campbell scored on an RBI single to make it 4-3. 
• Justin Oakley also hit a home run to dead center field in the top of the third to score two and bring Point Park right back out to a three-run lead, 6-3. 
• With an out and two runners on in the top of the fourth inning, Caden Ritsema would be the first pitcher out of the bullpen for the Golden Eagles. 
• Point Park would not stop hitting, blowing the game open in the top of the fourth with three more runs to bring their lead to six.
• The freshman Matthew Kindley again got on base with a lead-off double. He later scored the only run of the fourth inning for CU on a JC Salinas sacrifice fly. 
• Again, the Point Park offense had a response for every CU run, scoring on an RBI single through the shortstop hole to bring their lead back to six, 10-4.
• Grant Young got in on the offense in the bottom of the fifth with an RBI single to score Jake Collins and bring CU back within five, 10-5. Cornerstone would leave the bases loaded in the inning as they were unable to come any closer. 
• Cornerstone could not catch a break as a two out swing would land as a ground rule double right on the right field line to score two more Point Park runs and make it 12-5. 
• Cornerstone refused to quit. George Cutler would hit the Golden Eagles first HR of the 2023 season with a three-run shot to dead center field to put CU back within four, 12-8. 
• The CU staff could just not stop the Point Park offense as they would go on to take game one 16-8. 

 
Game Two – #RV Point Park – 3 Cornerstone – 0

• Unlike game one, game two got off to a fast start as the starters of Sebastian Rodriguez and Grant Young took control early at a quick pace. Rodriguez kept CU scoreless in the first two innings, while striking out the side in the top of the second. Young dealt with more runners but also held the Pioneers scoreless through the first two. 
• In the third, starter Grant Young showed off his defense on the mound making a kick save to keep the Pioneers off the base pads and record the Golden Eagles first 1-2-3 inning of the day. 
• With both pitchers continuing to dominate, a Jake Collins groundout ended a stretch of nine consecutive strikeouts from PPU starter Sebastian Rodriguez. 
• In the bottom of the fourth, Point Park finally broke through. After a base hit and a Cornerstone error, Justin Oakley crushed a ball to left for a two-run home run to put PPU on top 2-0. 
• Some CU errors allowed another Point Park runner to score in the fifth. Jared Campbell scored after a stolen base, error, and a passed ball to make it 3-0. 
• Andrew Meny, who did not play game one, broke up the perfect game from Sebastian Rodriguez with a single. JC Salinas dropped down a perfect bunt to follow that to put two runners on. Cornerstone was unable to score however as a strikeout would end the inning.
• Cornerstone was unable to get any more hits in the seventh to get something brewing as they fell 3-0 in game two. 

 
By the Numbers:
2 – In Matthew Kindley's first two plate appearances as a collegiate athlete he recorded extra base hits with a triple and a double.  
3/1 – George Cutler led the team on the day with three RBI and the only home run. 
38/9 – The two teams combined for 38 strikeouts. Grant Young recorded nine on the mound in game two. 
 
What's Next?
Cornerstone will have an early off day tomorrow before picking up action with a 10:45 a.m. double-header vs. Grand View (Iowa) on Wednesday back at Northeast Region Park. 

Baseball Contact: Jesse Campbell 
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