By Nelson Hubbell
In dominating offensive fashion, the Grand Rapids Community College Raiders took down the Cornerstone University Golden Eagles’ JV team 8-4 in the first seven inning game of a doubleheader and 16-4 in the second game.
Freshman Xander Reisbig has been one of the top hitters for the Raiders this season. Tuesday, April 5 he led the charge when he went a combined six for nine with five total runs scored and four RBIs.
“Ever since we gave him a chance, he’s been really solid for us,” said GRCC’s head coach Mike Eddington. “I’ve been very impressed with Xander.”
Fellow freshman Dylan Chargo, wasn’t far behind with a five for nine and three RBI day himself. A couple of redshirt-freshmen also had a very productive afternoon and evening: Ryan Dykstra went four for eight with three RBIs and three runs scored and a walk while Caleb Engelsman went three for six with three runs scored on the day.
Between the two games, GRCC had seven straight innings of at least one run scored. That stretch was from the fourth inning of the first game through the third inning of the second. In that time, the Raiders drove in at least one run and at most three.
The dominant offense totaled 29 hits and 22 runs scored. Dylan Chargo went one for four in the first game and four for five in the second. “Well, a lot of it was just confidence. Once they got hitting, it was just a snowball effect. It was a good day for us,” Eddington said.
It wasn’t the prettiest pitching day for the Raiders, but with plenty of run support whoever was on the mound could play freely with much less pressure.
“A lot of our younger guys just need to get innings, and so we threw in a lot of the young guys to get them some college experience. We’re very happy to get them some games in,” Eddington said.
Now sitting at 8-14 on the season, the Raiders have won eight out of their last 12. You can catch them in action at Davenport at the Farmers Insurance Athletic Complex against Lake Michigan College in a doubleheader, Thursday, April 7. The double header was originally scheduled to be a home game for GRCC but it was moved to Davenport due to conflicting schedules. The first seven inning game is set for 2 p.m and the second is scheduled for 4 p.m.
