HUNTINGTON, Ind. - The Madonna baseball team took on the host Huntington Foresters in an elimination game Friday night at the 2008 NAIA Region VIII Championship and fell by a final of 7-1. MU ends the season at 37-14 after capturing both the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference regular season and tournament championships and advancing to the Region VIII playoffs for the fifth straight season. MU's 37 wins are the most since the 2005 squad posted 40 triumphs.
MU took an early lead in the top of the second as Kevin Zerbo led off with a double and came home on a John McCracken single to make it 1-0 Crusaders.
HU took the lead back in the bottom of the second, doing all of its damage with two outs as Edwin Rodriguez hit a double down the left field line and courtesy runner Eric Harpring came home three pitches later on a Ryan Shell single to center to make it 1-1. Kevin Benbow then tripled off of MU starter Richard Lindquistto score Shell and make it 2-1 Foresters after two complete.
Huntington made it a 5-1 game in the fourth off of Lindquist, using three straight singles and a bases clearing double from Austin Kas to push the lead to four at 5-1. Head coach Greg Haeger then went to his bullpen and brought in the designated hitter McCracken to pitch. McCracken got the first hitter he faced Thad Frame to strike out but gave up a single to Korey Grow that scored Kas and made it 6-1.
Frame hit a solo homer in the sixth to make it 7-1 HU. After McCracken gave up a single to Grown, he got Alex Rinerson to fly out to Scott Boyer, Haeger went to the pen again and brought in Sean Maher who got Adam Farris to fly out to Shawn Little in right to end the inning.
MU attempted to rally in the ninth, as Zack McMillin reached on an error and Zerbo was hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second with no one out. HU starter Eric Randel got Pat Kenny and Boyer to pop out and struck out pinch hitter Drew Fry to end the game and give Huntington the 7-1 win.
Lindquist took the loss for Madonna, going 3 1/3 innings, giving up six runs on eight hits. Zerbo, Kenny, McCracken and Boyer had the Madonna hits. Randel earned the win to send HU into the championship game against Spring Arbor on Saturday.
