PUEBLO, Colo. (March 24, 2019) – Strong pitching performances propelled Colorado State University-Pueblo Baseball to a pair of wins over Colorado Christian University Sunday. The Pack beat the Cougars 4-1 in game and won game two 7-2.
These victories secured CSU-Pueblo's second consecutive series win. They now own an 8-4 record in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play, good for fourth place in the conference standings.
Brett Matthews (Jr., Queen Creek, Ariz.) earned his first win the Pack in game one. Matthews limited the Cougars to one unearned run over six innings. He struck out five and held Colorado Christian to six hits and three walks.
Nick Zappala (Jr., Anthem, Ariz.) took the ball in game two and dominated. Zappala carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning. Though he surrendered two runs in the sixth, Zappala secured the win to improve to 2-1. He struck out a season-high seven hitters over his six innings of work.
The Pack bullpen threw four scoreless innings.
Timmy Burtzloff (Sr., Thousand Oaks, Calif.) worked a scoreless seventh in game one. Burtzloff did not allow any baserunners and fanned one.
Andrew Coverly (Jr., Centennial, Colo.) shutout the Cougars over the final two innings of the first game. He recorded his fourth save of the season, adding two strikeouts to his ledger.
Andrew Nero (Sr., Huntington Beach, Calif.) pitched a scoreless seventh inning in game two.
Dakota Popham (Sr., Colorado Springs, Colo.) totaled five hits in seven trips between the two games. Popham went 2-for-4 in game one before a 3-for-3 showing in game two. The Pack's third baseman scored twice and drove in a run. Popham belted two doubles in game two.
Easton Adler (Jr., Mead, Colo.) scored three runs between the two games. Adler doubled and stole a base on a 3-for-7 day at the dish.
In game one, the Pack went on the attack early. Rion Santamaria (Jr., Yorba Linda, Calif.) knocked in pinch runner Zac Hanenberg (Fr., Cañon City, Colo.) with a single to put the Pack up 1-0 in the first.
The Cougars answered with a run in the second. CSU-Pueblo reclaimed the lead in the third. Robbie Espinosa (Sr., Yorba Linda, Calif.) whacked a double that drove in Adler. Espinosa would later score on an error to make it 3-1 after three.
The Pack tacked on an insurance run in the eighth. Stone Romero (Jr., Albuquerque, N.M.) brought in Aidan Welch (So., Seattle, Wash.) on a single that led the Pack to a 4-1 win.
Game two belonged to the Pack from the first inning. They scored three runs in the first inning and one in the third to make it 4-0.
Espinosa plated Adler again in the fifth. He scored on a Popham double that made it 6-0. Santamaria scored on a wild pitch to give the Pack a 7-0 lead.
Zappala held the Cougars without a hit for the first five innings. The Cougars broke up Zappala's no-hit bid in the sixth. They scored two runs, but the Pack rolled to a 7-2 victory.
The ThunderWolves will travel to face Dixie State University in their first RMAC series against the Trailblazers. This series starts Friday at 6 p.m.
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As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, Colorado State University – Pueblo competes in 22 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
