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Posted by Patrick Moore - Baseball - Tue, Mar 9, 2010
Site: Winter Haven, Fla. (Chain of Lakes Park)
Score: Madonna University 6, Evangel University 2
Records: MU 12-2; EU 3-7
Next MU event: Wednesday, March 10 vs. Evangel University (Lake Myrtle Park), 9:00am

BOX SCORE

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. (MadonnaCrusaders.com) - - A day after the Madonna University baseball team recorded the program's 650th all-time win, Head Coach Greg Haeger won his 400th career game on Tuesday (March 9) as his Crusaders downed Evangel University 6-2 at Chain of Lakes Park.

Haeger - the second ever head coach in Madonna history - has amassed his career wins all at the helm of the Crusaders. Haeger had previously reached the 300 win mark during the 2007 season and becomes just the third coach in Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference history to reach 400 wins, joining long time Aquinas College skipper Terry Bocian and the late Hank Burbridge of Spring Arbor University.

Haeger reached 400 wins quicker than most would as his Madonna squads over the last five-plus seasons have tallied 198 wins and the Crusaders have won four league titles over that same time span.

The Crusaders helped Haeger to win No. 400 with three runs in the top of the first as the first six Crusaders reached base with junior Shawn Little (Canton, Mich.) led off with a walk and moved to second on a single by sophomore Billy Hardin III. Senior Zach Flavin (Novi, Mich.) singled to score Little and make it 1-0. Junior Matt Kay (Canton, Mich.) reached on a single and junior Dan Harder (Brighton, Mich.) drove in Flavin to make it 2-0. Kay scored one hitter later when junior Jeff Bultinck (Sterling Heights, Mich.) reached on an error to make it 3-0.

MU added another run in the second when Little reached on a one out single and moved to third on a wild pitch and a passed ball before coming home on a sacrifice fly from Hardin to make it 4-0.

Madonna tacked on another run in the sixth as senior Drew Fry (Madison Heights, Mich.) hit a sac fly to score Harder and make it 5-0.

Evangel trimmed the Madonna lead to three runs by scoring a pair of runs off of MU starter Jeff Mann (Waterford, Mich.) in the sixth but Mann ended the threat by getting a 5-4-3 double play to end the inning with the Crusaders on top 5-2.

Hardin reached on a one out triple in the seventh and came home on a ground out from Flavin that made it 6-2.

Evangel threatened in the bottom of the ninth, putting runners on first and second after walks, forcing Haeger to call on freshman Jeremy Gooding (Livonia, Mich.) to come in and close the game. Gooding got the first hitter he saw to go down looking on strikes and induced the final hitter to ground out to short for the final out.

Mann (2-1) picked up the win, throwing five and a third innings, striking out three. Sophomore Brian Diroff (Allen Park, Mich.), junior Chris Skalski (West Bloomfield, Mich.), sophomore Andy Omilian (Plymouth, Mich.) all came in to relieve and did not allow a hit before giving way to Gooding who earned his first career save. Little, Hardin III and Kay each posted two hits while Flavin drove in a pair.

The Crusaders return to the field on Wednesday (March 10) with another single nine-inning game against Evangel University. First pitch at Lake Myrtle Park is set for 9:00am.

Contact: Patrick Moore (734) 432-5834