IRVINE, Calif. – On the same day that Concordia University Irvine celebrated the inauguration of Dr. Michael Thomas as the school's new President, the CUI baseball team also enjoyed the beginning of a new era on the diamond.

The Eagles enjoyed a 10-2 victory over the Regis Rangers on Friday in their home opener, wearing their new green CUI hats and reveling in their newly renovated ballpark.

Eagles Field underwent massive upgrades over the past few months. New bleachers were installed with dark green seatbacks, gold-highlighted steps and a refurbished press box. Both dugouts and bullpens were renovated and adorned with wooden walls while the fan viewing areas were also expanded.

"There was a different feeling in the air," said CUI head coach Joe Turgeon. "It was a great day. All the people that helped set this field up, I can't thank them enough." With all the different people that had hands in (helping with) the opening of the stadium, the players and the staff, you could tell from the start how excited they were."

On the mound, right-handed pitcher Brett Vansant allowed only one hit and two earned runs in six innings of work. The only hit Regis (0-1, 0-0 RMAC) was able to get off Vansant was a two-run homer on a 3-2 changeup by Coby Zimmerman. Vansant worked out of trouble in the early innings, expertly picking his spots in the strike zone and striking out batters to end each of the first three innings.

"I felt really comfortable once I got out there," said Vansant. "First inning was a little shaky, but we settled in and got the job done. It was really fun playing in front of our home crowd and our new stadium and it was a good time."

Designated hitter Cooper Moore bashed a pair of home runs to the delight of the home fans and the entire CUI offense came alive in the middle innings. CUI (3-2, 0-0 PacWest) scored three times in the fourth and followed that up with a huge fifth frame by scoring six times to take a 9-2 advantage.

"It was an awesome experience," said Moore. "It's a beautiful field, everyone did a great job. It pumped us up. All day, our team was just pumped up and ready to have fun with it and also be aggressive in all aspects of the game."

Infielders Bailey Collins, Haloa Dudoit and Shane Hersh each smacked two hits on the day and catcher Tony Garcia III collected two RBI.

Meanwhile, senior pitcher Isaiah Bettencourt finished the game on the mound with three scoreless innings to back up Vansant.

CUI returns to action this weekend against Regis as the two squads will play a non-conference doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 8 starting at 11 a.m. followed by a Sunday matinee at 12 p.m.

For the full CUI baseball schedule, click here.