Grand Rapids, Mich. – Softball finally returned home after a long spring break trip to open up WHAC conference play in their home opener against #5 Madonna. The highly ranked Crusader team proved their worth as they rolled past the Golden Eagles in both games. Cornerstone must have a short memory as they turnaround quickly on Saturday, March 21^stfor a doubleheader matchup with Michigan-Dearborn beginning at 1:00 p.m. 
 
Game One Recap: Cornerstone – 3 Madonna – 13

• Madonna opened the first inning with three strong swings to earn the first run of the contest. 
• Anna Griffioen secured the first single of the game for the Golden Eagles, but Cornerstone could not find the tying run to end the inning. 
• The Crusaders found themselves in a two out hole to start the second inning but weathered the storm well with two big doubles to drive in two more runs and earn them a 3-0 advantage in the game. 
• Both teams stiffened their out-fielding play through the next couple innings until Alayna Meade led off the bottom of the fourth with a single to set up Cornerstone.
• A pair of strong at bats for the Golden Eagles led to a Paige Liddell sacrifice fly as Cornerstone was able to fight back to a 3-1 deficit. 
• In the top of the 5^th inning Madonna found themselves in a two out hole but they continued to fight and drive in two more runs and give themselves a 5-1 lead. 
• The Golden Eagles defense continued to struggle against the strong at bats from Madonna as they drove in multiple runs in the final two innings to earn the 13-3 win. 

Game Two Recap: Cornerstone – 0 Madonna – 9

• Game two started off much tamer as both teams were able to find three quick outs on both sides of first inning. 
• The second inning belonged to the Crusaders as they took advantage of two walks and earned three runs to open the scoring in the second game of the day. 
• Cornerstone looked to find any sort of opening, but the pitching was too strong for Madonna as they held two more scoreless innings. 
• In the 4^th inning Madonna added one more run to extend their lead to 4-0.
• The story remained the same in the top of the 5^th inning as the Crusaders could not stop scoring as they drove in three more runs. 
• The steady attack continued in the 6^th inning as they reached a 9-0 advantage and closed out a strong performance over the Golden Eagles taking the double header sweep. 

 
By the Numbers:
4 – The Golden Eagles pitching crew combined for only four total strikeouts across both games. 
2 – Dylan Holmes had two strong at bats today securing a double and single on the day. 

What's Next?
The Golden Eagles will look to respond right away as they are back in action on Saturday, March 21^st for another doubleheader against Michigan-Dearborn starting at 1:00 p.m. 
 
Contact: Mason Young | mason.young@cornerstone.edu
CU Athletics: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
 
  Read Full Article