Point Takes Both from CIU, Stays Undefeated
WEST POINT, Ga. - The Point University baseball team followed up its season-opening double header sweep with another over Columbia International (S.C.) on Friday and improved to 4-0 on the young campaign. The Skyhawks triumphed 3-0 in game one and 12-6 in game two.
Point returns to action next weekend when it hosts Shawnee State on Feb. 6 for a twin bill. Game one begins at 3 p.m. followed by game two scheduled for 6 p.m. at West Point Park Baseball Field.
Point 3, CIU 0; 7 Innings
After a pair of strong starts by Daniel Crabtree and Vittorio Iacobucci on Thursday, Dylan Davis made it a trio of dominant starting pitching performances to begin Point's season. The redshirt sophomore right-hander faced the minimum in the first inning, aided by a caught stealing by catcher Easton Harrison to wipe away a hit batter.
Davis gave up his first of just four hits, a one-out single, in the top of the second but worked around it. Meanwhile, the Skyhawks went down in order in each of the first two frames.
Point got on the board in the bottom of the third. Tommy Hoye worked a leadoff walk and advanced to second on an error. He then scored on a single by Josiah Palomino, the number nine hitter who also knocked in a run in the first contest of Thursday's double header.
The Rams loaded the bases in the top of the fourth. CIU's second hit of the day, another single, and two walks placed Davis in a two-out jam, but he induced a ground out to shortstop to end the threat and keep his team ahead 1-0.
The Skyhawks added a run in the bottom of the fourth. Brady Bye began the frame with a single to right field and subsequently stole second base. He moved to third on a fly ball to right field and scored on a ground out to short off the bat of Bradley Bartholf, the freshman's first career RBI. Point made it 3-0 in the fifth inning. Arwin Burgos led off with a double, advanced to third on a fly ball to right field and crossed the plate on an infield single by Damian Hernandez.
Davis worked six innings, gave up no runs, four hits and two walks while striking out two. It took the right-hander 74 pitches to complete six frames. Senior Cole Johnson was called upon to pitch the seventh and worked a one-two-three inning, earning the first save of his career with the Skyhawks.
Point 12, CIU 6; 7 Innings
The Skyhawks' offense exploded in game two, as it did on Thursday. The Rams scored one in the top of the first and took their first lead of the series, but Point responded with four in the bottom half. After loading the bases with nobody out, Hernandez singled and Jackson Divido singled to bring in one run each. The Skyhawks scored two more on two separate wild pitches, taking a 4-1 lead after the first inning.
Burgos led off the bottom of the second with a walk. Later in the inning, Hernandez swatted his first home run of the year and the team's second, ballooning Point's advantage to 6-1. The Skyhawks made it 7-1 in the bottom of the third on a Bailey Stroud sacrifice fly.
The Rams' offense got back into the game in the top of the fourth inning with a four-run burst, closing the gap to 7-5. The Skyhawks got those runs back right away in the bottom of the frame on a Divido double, a wild pitch and singles by Stroud and Burgos, sailing ahead 11-5. It became 12-5 in the fifth on a home run by Oscar Soto, the junior college transfer's first in a Point uniform. The Skyhawks scored in each of the first five innings.
CIU added a run in the top of the seventh, but Point closed out a 12-6 victory. Freshman Jack Teague earned his first career win for the Skyhawks with four innings of relief.
