GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – Power hitting and timely pitching proved a winning combination for California Baptist University in its series opener at Colorado Mesa on Thursday at Suplizio Field.

Two home runs, including a three-run shot from true freshman John Glenn, and a quality start from ace pitcher Garett King paved the way for the Lancers' 7-3 win over the Mavericks, who are ranked 12^th in NCAA Division II.

Fourteenth-ranked CBU won its eighth-straight game to improve to 8-3 this season, while CMU drops to 5-4. The four-game series continues Friday with a doubleheader at 11 a.m. PDT and wraps up Saturday with another 11 a.m. game.

"It was a great team win today on the road, out of state," Glenn said. "We came in here with the same energy we have at home; the dugout was fired up."

Glenn batted 2-for-4 in the game, with a double, the three-run homer and scored twice. Kyle Oyama was also .500 (2-for-4) at the plate, while senior Tyler Johnson went 2-for-5 with three runs batted in. CBU's offense also forced Colorado Mesa to use four pitchers in the game, while the Lancer used just two pitchers.

"I wanted to come out and get things started, nothing too big, just make good contact," Glenn said. "The ball just happened to go where I wanted it to."

Pitching wise, CBU managed to leave runners in scoring position in six of the nine innings. King, the starter, and closer Brody Robinson each did so three times, with Robinson getting the 2.1-inning save in the process. Overall, King allowed just one run on six hits and one walk through the first 6.2 innings.

"It was a good team win, everyone came together," Oyama said. "We made some mistakes, but stayed with it, battled through and got the win.

"Coach is always talking about having confidence and trusting our preparation and that's what we did today. We knew Colorado Mesa was good but we believed in ourselves."

Both teams went hitless through the first two innings, with Oyama registering the first hit of the game in the third inning. It wasn't until the fourth inning when a team got on the scoreboard, though.

Colorado Mesa threatened in the bottom of the third when it put two on with one out on an infield single and error. Catcher Bryce Macy caught the lead runner leaning with a back pick at third base and then King induced a fly out to left field to end the inning.

CBU built on its defensive momentum offensively in the fourth. Tommy Bell led off the inning by being hit by a pitch and DJ Porter drew a full-count walk to put two on with one out. Glenn delivered the big blow of the game when he went opposite field on an 0-1 pitch and sent it over the fence in left.

"John's here to hit and that's what he did today," Oyama said. "He's seeing the ball well."

In the bottom of the frame, CMU put two on with one out and then loaded the bases with two outs, but King got two big fly outs to end the inning and keep the Lancers ahead 3-0. Macy built on CBU's lead with a two-out, solo shot over the right-field fence in the fifth.

The Lancers added an insurance run in the seventh inning. Oyama led things off with a double into the right-center gap and Johnson brought him home with a two-out single into right field to make it 5-0.

Colorado Mesa finally got on the board in the seventh inning off a leadoff single, hit by pitch and two wild pitches. With a runner at third, King came up with his fifth and final strikeout of the game on a full count and then came out of the game for Robinson. In three pitches, Robinson got an inning-ending popup to shortstop to end the frame to leave the runner at third.

Two more insurance runs came for CBU in the ninth. Glenn led things off with a double down the left-field line and an error put Andrew Bash aboard with no outs. An Alfredo Rodriguez walk loaded the bases with one out and Johnson plated both Bash and Glenn with a single into center field to cap the scoring.