PUEBLO, Colo. – The Colorado State University Pueblo Baseball squad split Saturday's Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference doubleheader at home against Colorado Christian University.
With the 1-1 Saturday outing, CSU Pueblo now leads the series 2-1 over the Cougars. The Pack are now 22-17 overall on the season and 11-12 in RMAC play. CCU is now to 5-31 overall and 3-16 in RMAC play.
Beautiful weather consumed Rawlings Field and both teams took advantage. The ThunderWolves dominated the Cougars in the first game, as the Pack won game one 7-4, and CCU dominated game two, winning 5-3.
GAME ONE
CSU Pueblo dominated game one, despite trailing early on. Senior pitcher
Tyler Curtis (Las Vegas, Nev./Southern Idaho) pitched a gem, winning his seventh game of the season to improve to 7-2 in six strong innings of work.
Colorado Christian threw the first punch as Jonny Tewinkle hit a solo homerun off Curtis in the top of the second inning, but that was short lived when CSU Pueblo answered with two runs in the bottom half.
Junior first baseman
Brad Stone (Las Vegas, Nev./Southern Nevada) doubled in the first run of the game for the Pack, which was followed up by junior
Kade Snodgrass (Derby, Kan./Neosho County) doubling in another run, scoring Stone, and giving the Pack a 2-1 lead after two.
CSU Pueblo got some insurance in the bottom of the third when freshman
Logan Kelly (San Juan Capistrano, Calif./Capistrano Valley Christian) hit a solo homerun to deep center to put the Pack up 3-1. Junior
Elijah Borjas (Denver, Colo./Lakewood) followed up Kelly with an RBI single, putting the Pack up 4-1. Junior
Kysen Howard (Overland Park, Kan./Blue Valley Northwest) poured it on the Cougars when he doubled down the left field line, scoring Borjas, and putting the Pack up 5-1 after three.
CCU got a run back in the top of the fourth inning when Aaron Morgan hit another solo homer off Curtis, cutting the lead down to 5-2.
CCU's answer was short lived when CSU Pueblo got two more in the bottom half of the fourth. Sophomore
Jeremiah Sanchez (Pueblo, Colo./Pueblo West) singled through the right side, scoring Kelly. Borjas followed up Sanchez with an RBI double to right center, making the score 7-2.
That was all CSU Pueblo needed the rest of the afternoon offensively. CCU was able to get a couple of late runs in the seventh, when Ross Panlasigui singled in a run, and Kade Carney grounded into a double play, scoring a run.
Senior
Nick Perry finished up the game for the Pack in the seventh, securing the victory for the Pack 7-4.
GAME TWO
CCU got out in front early in game two and never looked never looked back once they took the lead.
The Pack did have a brief lead early on, when Castaneda singled in a run in the first, but that is all the Pack could celebrate in game two. CCU took the lead in the second inning when Gavin Acosta doubled in two runs on a deep drive to left field, putting the Cougars up 2-1.
CCU extended their lead in the third inning 4-1 when William Brassil homered to right field on a two-run blast.
CSU Pueblo did answer late in the game as Sanchez doubled in a run in the bottom half of the fifth, but CSU Pueblo left runners stranded on and was only able to score the one run, making the score 4-2.
CCU got an insurance run in the top of the sixth inning when Sawyer Shepherd scored on a fielder's choice to put the Cougars up three runs. Once again CSU Pueblo threatened to do damage in the home half of the sixth, but could only score one run when Stone singled to center.
CSU Pueblo could not rally in the seventh and final inning and dropped the contest 5-3.
