LIVONIA, Mich. -- "I am very excited to add both Blake and Brendan to the coaching staff. I think they are both rising stars in the coaching profession and are very well respected by the players they have coached," said Huard. "When going through the hiring process, I was most impressed with their ability to connect with players and the passion they have for helping student-athletes reach their full potential. They will play a huge role in the continued development of our pitchers and position players. I look forward to the impact both will have on Madonna Baseball this upcoming season and beyond."

Blake McRae joins the Crusaders after completing his professional baseball career, which included stints with the Mahoning Valley Scrappers, New York Revolution and Westside Woolly Mammoths. Prior to his professional career, he enjoyed a successful collegiate career at Lansing Community College and Eastern Michigan University.

At Lansing Community College, McRae hit .358 with 137 hits, eight home runs and 105 RBIs. He capped off his collegiate career at Eastern Michigan with a breakout senior season, batting .333 with a .914 OPS, a team-high 61 hits, five home runs, 35 RBIs and 87 total bases in 50 games.

McRae will also serve as the Director of Hitting and Strength and Conditioning at 3PD Performance in Waterford. This past spring, he helped lead his alma mater, Romeo High School, to a 30-7 record as the team's hitting coach while guiding the Bulldogs to a .320 team batting average.

Brendan Cicalo joins Madonna after a three-year coaching tenure as the pitching coach at Mott Community College. During his time with the Bears, he helped develop 15 pitchers who went on to continue their collegiate careers at four-year institutions, including 2026 Madonna graduate Graham Sim.

Cicalo's collegiate playing career began with three seasons at Mott Community College before transferring to Madonna for the 2023 season. Unfortunately, his playing career came to an end after undergoing Tommy John surgery prior to the 2024 season. He graduated from Madonna in December 2025 with high honors (3.75 GPA or higher), earning a Bachelor of Science in Sports Management along with a certificate in Coaching.

In addition to his collegiate coaching experience, Cicalo served as a Pitching Development Intern at 3PD under Max Bain and Adam Bodary, where he helped train professional, NCAA Division I, II and III, NAIA, junior college and high school pitchers during the offseason. He currently works remotely for Bain and GUD Baseball, continuing to assist in the development of pitchers across multiple levels of the game.