Grand Rapids, Mich. – The Saints played a set of road games over at DeWitt Field against their rivals, Cornerstone University this evening (Apr. 9). Aquinas annihilated the ball today, racking up 28 hits and 25 runs over two games to complete an important sweep over the Golden Eagles. The wins improved the Saints to 15-19 this season and 7-9 in conference play.

Game 1: Aquinas 12, Cornerstone 4 (7 Innings)

Sam Pollack received the start on the bump for the Saints and he managed to get out of an early jam to keep Cornerstone runs off the scoreboard. The AQ offense immediately responded with a run as Nathan Wilcox was hit by a pitch and Chase Ingersoll hit him home with a double.

The offense continued to cook in the top of the third. Hits from Ramsey Bousseau, Nicolas Verdugo, Mark Binkowski, and Wilcox brought three more runs across the plate. Grant Martin and Ryan Gillings doubles scored another run before the Saints managed to load up the bases for Bousseau to earn an RBI from a walk.

The game quieted down a bit as AQ added one run in the fifth and Cornerstone finally brought home runs in the fourth and fifth innings for a 7-2 AQ lead.

That changed in the top of the seventh once Aquinas put on its two-out rally caps. The Saints ripped seven consecutive hits to score five additional runs. Drew Mitchell, Bousseau, and Landon Mueller combined for the five RBIs and helped get the Saints to a double-digit 12-2 lead.

Cornerstone scored a pair of consolation runs, but the first game of the doubleheader was all Aquinas. Pollack was credited with his first career win after allowing just one run over five innings pitched.

Game 2: Aquinas 13, Cornerstone 8

Hunter Doyle started on the mound in game two. He retired the side in the first inning, but three consecutive hits to start the second resulted in two Golden Eagle runs and a pitching change for the Saints. CU managed to generate another hit and another run for a 3-0 lead. Cornerstone then extended its advantage to four after an error in the bottom of the fourth allowed Andrew Meny to reach home.

The AQ bats returned with a vengeance in the top of the seventh to give the Saints the lead. Luke LaCross kicked things off with his first career home run to put Aquinas on the board. Cornerstone's pitching struggled following the home run. Bousseau was walked, Verdugo was hit by a pitch, Binkowski was walked, and Mitchell was walked to score a run and force a pitching change.

The damage didn't stop there as Ingersoll doubled and Martin hit a single to drive in three more runs. Several at-bats later, LaCross stepped up to the plate again in the fifth inning and crushed a two-RBI triple to right center, giving LaCross seven total bases in one inning.

Ingersoll and Martin generated another pair of runs in the sixth to extend the AQ lead to 9-4 before Bousseau and Binkowski increased the lead to seven in the seventh with a bunt single and a triple, respectively.

The Saints added on two more runs in the eighth inning, this time of the unearned variety following a CU error. AQ took a 13-4 lead into the ninth inning and benefitted from the nine-run cushion. The Golden Eagle bats finally came back to life in the ninth and they scored four runs on six hits. However, the late offense was too little, too late, giving the Saints the sweep.

Blake Waibel was credited with his second win of the season after mostly shutting down the Golden Eagles after entering the game in the second inning. He punched out five batters over the next three innings before Mason Hill came into the game and rang up six Golden Eagles.

By the Numbers

Aquinas had a monster day on offense and was extremely effective in bringing runs across the plate. AQ scored 25 runs on 28 hits compared to CU's 12 runs on 26 hits.

11 different Saints picked up hits today with eight different players recording at least two hits. Most notable was Ingersoll with five hits and Gillings with four. Bousseau, Ingersoll, and LaCross combined for 11 of AQ's 23 RBIs.

The Saints also had a good day on the basepaths, swiping 10 bags on 11 attempts.

Up Next

Aquinas will be looking to carry this momentum into the weekend as the Saints will play six games over a four-day window. AQ starts the weekend on Friday (Apr. 12) with a road doubleheader against Cleary. The Saints then play a home doubleheader against Lourdes on Sunday (Apr. 14) and Lawrence Tech on Monday (Apr. 15).