ATHENS, Tenn. – Junior shortshop Ryan Lambrecht belted a pair of solo home runs to give Madonna baseball an early lead, but big innings from No. 14 Tennessee Wesleyan led the host Bulldogs to a 14-5 comeback victory on Monday (March 7) in Athens, Tenn. With the pair of solo shots, Lambrecht (Lake Orion, Mich./Lake Orion High School) improves his team-leading total to three through 12 games in 2016.
MU settles into a even 6-6 record with the setback while the 14th-ranked Bulldogs improve to 12-4 after earning their 11th consecutive victory.
The game started off with a bang, literally, as Lambrecht launched a 440' leadoff bomb over the center field wall to give the Crusaders a 1-0 edge. The junior was back at it in the third inning, sending another ball over the center field wall to push the Crusaders back in front by a 3-1 tally through two and a half innings.
The Bulldogs answered in the bottom of the third by scoring four runs and added on six more an inning later to halt the Crusaders upset bid of the nation's 14th-ranked team. The back-to-back big innings propelled the Bulldogs to an 11-3 lead through four frames as the hosts would hang on to win the nine-inning contest, 14-5.
Lambrecht finished the day going 2-for-2 with three RBIs and a walk while Taylor Grzelakowski (Fraser, Mich./Fraser High School) led MU with three hits (3-for-4). Chase Dobbie (Mississauga, Ontario/Meadowvale Secondary) and Ben Matigian (Livonia, Mich./Churchill High School) checked in with two hits each while Dobbie and Jalen Thomas (Southfield, Mich./Lathrup High School) recorded an RBI each in the road setback.
Bobby St. Pierre (Windsor, Ontario/Crowder CC) came on to work the eighth inning and went on to record three strikeouts in one frame of work. Todd Jones(Monroe, Mich./St. Mary Catholic Central) got the start while Cliff Landess (Carleton, Mich./Airport High School) and Patrick Wierimaa (Redford, Mich./Union High School) appeared in relief alongside St. Pierre.
The Crusaders will take two days off before returning to the diamond for a four-game series at No. 8 Georgia Gwinnett. The Grizzlies welcome the Crusaders to Lawrenceville, Ga. owners of a perfect 22-0 record this season.
