Event: 2009 WHAC Baseball Tournament
Site: Livonia, Mich. (Ilitch Ballpark)
Scores: No. 1-seed Madonna 11, Siena Heights 1
No. 1-seed Madonna 29, Davenport 7
Records: Madonna 37-9 | Siena Heights 19-33 | Davenport 32-23
Next event: Madonna vs. Indiana Tech/Concordia loser | Sunday, 12pm (Ilitch Ballpark)
LIVONIA, Mich. - - The Madonna University baseball team stayed alive in the 2009 WHAC Baseball Tournament on Saturday (May 2) with a pair of wins starting with an 11-1 victory over Siena Heights and finishing the day with a 29-7 win over Davenport.
Matt Kay (Canton, Mich.) hit three home runs on the day, including a pair of three-run shots in back-to-back at-bats in the win over Davenport. Kevin Zerbo (Farmington, Mich.) also had two home runs on the day.
Kyle Bolton (Burlington, Ont.) threw a complete game six-hitter in the win over SHU, giving up just an unearned run for the win. Trent Pohl (Grand Ledge, Mich.) earned the win over Davenport, going six complete while striking out five.
In the opener, MU jumped in front big in the second inning, plating five runs with the scoring starting as Zerbo took the first pitch of the inning over the wall in left for a 1-0 MU lead. The Crusaders tacked on four more runs due in part to a triple from Kay and a double from Shawn Little (Canton, Mich.) to go on top 5-0.
The Crusaders added three more runs in the third as Kay and Zach Flavin (Novi, Mich.) hit back-to-back home runs to increase the lead to 8-0. MU added single runs in the fifth, seventh and ninth for the 11-1 win.
In the second elimination game of the day, the Crusaders put a strangle hold on the Panthers of Davenport early scoring five times in the first inning. After Ryan Morrow (Taylor, Mich.) reached on a single and stole second, Little drew a walk and a double from Aaron Hacias scored Morrow and Little to put MU on top 2-0. Zerbo was hit by a pitch to put two runners on for Kay. Kay then emptied the bases with his second homer of the day and a 5-0 Madonna lead.
The Crusaders put the game away in the second, scoring 10 runs to go on top 15-0. The highlight in the second once again came from Kay as the sophomore rightfielder hit his second three-run homer in as many at-bats as part of the biggest inning of the season for MU.
After the Panthers scratched across a run in the top of the third, MU answered back with seven in the bottom of the inning to go on top 22-1. DU added two runs in the fourth and sixth around a single run in the fifth to trim the MU lead to 17 at 22-5 but MU tacked on two runs in the fifth to go along with three in the seventh and two in the eighth for a 28-6 lead heading into the ninth.
The Panthers were able to score a run in the ninth off of the MU bullpen but it was not enough as they fell by the 29-7 final.
MU now faces off with Concordia in another elimination game on Sunday. First pitch at Ilitch Ballpark is set for 12pm.
