GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – After two weeks in Florida and a weekend that was forced to be rescheduled due to weather conditions, Cornerstone is set to begin the WHAC season on Monday, March 20 vs. rival Aquinas. CU will play as the road team at De Witt Field against Aquinas, followed by the "home-opener" vs. Cleary on Tuesday, and then will head to Northwestern Ohio over the weekend for a four-game set.
Opponent: Aquinas
Location: Grand Rapids, Mich. (De Witt Field)
Time: 2 p.m. Double-Header
Live Video
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Opponent: Cleary
Location: Grand Rapids, Mich. (De Witt Field)
Time: 1 p.m. Double-Header
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Opponent: Northwestern Ohio
Location: Lima, Ohio (UNOH Baseball Field)
Time: 1 p.m. Double-Header
Live Video
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Florida Hitting Standouts
Cornerstone went 7-11 during their two week 18-game stretch in the Russ Matt Central Florida Invitational, and although the bats struggled in week one, they woke up in week two.
Jake Collins earned WHAC Player of the Week in the second week of the season after he hit five HR's and 17 RBI in an eight-game stretch. Collins hit .310 over the first 18 games and he leads the team with 23 RBI and is tied for the team lead with five home runs.
George Cutler and
Landon Poll also had strong stretches at the plate as Poll leads the team with a .341 batting average and Cutler is tied for the team lead with five HRs with four of them made in the first week.
Florida Pitching Standouts
CU saw a solid trip on the mound as the team recorded a team ERA of 6.55, which is nearly a run lower per game than a season ago when Cornerstone saw their most successful year in program history.
Caden Ritsema threw a one-hitter on the trip while
Grant Young threw a two-hitter to highlight individual game action.
Josiah Stairs and
Ben Cunningham were each solid out of the bullpen as well each recording an ERA below three, while combining for 19 strikeouts in 18.1 innings pitched.
WHAC Outlook
Cornerstone was projected in the preseason rankings to finish seventh overall after finishing fourth in WHAC play a season ago with a 15-7 conference record. Of the three teams CU will play this week, Cornerstone went 4-2 against them a season ago.
