ADRIAN, Mich. – Madonna baseball ran its winning streak to eight games after picking up a pair of wins and the season sweep over Siena Heights on Wednesday (April 20) in Adrian, Mich. The Crusaders took game one by a 3-1 final before edging out the Saints in the latter game, 1-0.
The current eight game winning streak lifts the Crusaders record to 25-14 overall and 15-4 in the WHAC, two games behind Davenport in league play. The Saints fell to 17-21 overall and 8-13 in conference play after falling to the Crusaders all four games this season.
GAME ONE – MADONNA 3, SIENA HEIGHTS 1
Entering the ninth inning tied 1-1, the Crusaders finally broke free on a pair of RBI singles by Zack Byron (Dexter, Mich./Macomb CC) and Shane Dokey (Howell, Mich./Brighton High School). After Levi Larmour (Oakville, Ontario/Mesa CC) reached via error and advanced to second, Bryon came to the plate to drive his fellow senior home, giving the Crusaders a 2-1 lead and the eventual game-winning hit. Dokey followed next with a RBI single of his own to plate Byron to extend the Crusaders ninth-inning edge to 3-1.
MU closer Bobby St. Pierre (Windsor, Ontario/Crowder CC) trotted to the mound in the bottom of the ninth and closed the door to earn his 10th save of the season to secure a 3-1 victory for the Crusaders. St. Pierre allowed the winning run to reach base before the Saints lined into a double play to end any threat in the ninth.
Before the Crusaders got to the ninth inning, the story of the game was each team's starting pitching as Evan Piechota (Livonia, Mich./Stevenson High School) was his usual self for MU in the narrow win. Piechota cruised through the Saints lineup for the second time this season, working eight innings on the mound before giving way to St. Pierre for closing duties in the ninth.
Piechota was ahead of hitters all afternoon, tossing eight innings of three hit ball with seven strikeouts to earn his sixth win of his senior campaign. The senior allowed one run after the leadoff runner in the sixth reached via triple. After his latest quality start, Piechota ends the day with a 1.34 ERA and .169 opponents' batting average through 67 innings pitched this season.
The Crusaders also scored their first run of the game in the sixth off of a John Lauro(Rochester Hills, Mich./UD-Jesuit High School) RBI single to right field. Lauro's single brought Ryan Lambrecht (Lake Orion, Mich./Lake Orion High School) around to score after Lambrecht got the inning started by also singling to right field. Jalen Thomas (Southfield, Mich./Lathrup High School) notched a single of his own to move Lambrecht into scoring position for Lauro's RBI drive that broke a scoreless game in the top of the sixth.
The top of the order did the damage for the Crusaders as MU's 1-5 hitters accounted for 11 of the team's 12 hits while driving in all three runs in the 3-1 final. Lauro and Byron led the way with three hits each while Lambrecht and Thomas each connected on two hits in the game one victory.
GAME TWO – MADONNA 1, SIENA HEIGHTS 0
Pitching was stellar again for MU in game two as Johno Rodriguez (Sterling Heights, Mich./Indian Hills CC) toed the slab for head coach Greg Haeger and the Crusaders. Rodriguez teamed up with Adam Prashad (Mississauga, Ontario/Mississauga Secondary), Patrick Wierimaa (Redford, Mich./Union High School) and Bobby St. Pierre as the group combined to shut out the Saints in the nightcap. Before handing duties off to the bullpen, Rodriguez went four strong innings, giving up six hits while striking out two in a scoreless performance.
Prashad, who picked a complete game shutout victory on Sunday (April 17), entered to work a clean fifth inning while Wierimaa checked in to do the same in the sixth – striking out a pair of Saints batters in the process. St. Pierre stepped to the mound in the seventh inning to earn his second save of the day and 11thoverall on the season after shutting down the Saints to help MU earn the one run victory.
The Crusaders tallied the only run needed in the fourth inning after Jalen Thomas, John Lauro and Jimmy White (Cincinnati, Ohio/Sinclair CC) combined for back-to-back-to-back singles to load the bases in the frame. With the bases full and one out, senior outfielder Mike Tibbits (Plymouth, Mich./Holy Cross) came up big for MU with a sac fly RBI to left field. The sac fly scored Thomas, who led off the inning with a single, to give the Crusaders a 1-0 lead that would hold the rest of the way.
As a team, the Crusaders notched seven hits and were paced by Lauro and Thomas with two each while White, Shane Dokey and Matt Deneau (Amherstburg, Ontario/Saint Thomas Villanova) accounted for the other three hits.
