BACK TO BACK NO HITTERS!
 
STA        11
SAOP    0
 
The St. Anne Baseball Crusaders traveled to St. Anthony of Padua (SAOP) for an early road test on the diamond.  SAOP is the 3 time defending North Division champions.  A motivated St. Anne team scored early and never allowed SAOP to threaten.  Two Crusader pitchers combined to throw another NO HITTER!  Michael Herndon and Eoghan Collins threw a combined 5 innings allowing 0 hits and striking out 13!  So far on the season our pitching has completely dominated our opponents.  Herndon and Luke Ubanoski each had a pair of hits and drove in 5 of our 11 runs. 
 
The Crusaders scored early.  After loading the bases in the first inning, Luke Ubanoski laced a line drive in the gap for a base clearing triple.  We scored 3 more runs in the second inning.  A single to RF by Herndon scored Andrew O’Brien & Zac Daigre.  Then Ubanoski drove in Herndon.  On the mound, Herndon was dominant striking out the side in the first inning.  In the second, we allowed our first base runner of the season, but Herndon picked over to Collins who fired the ball to Daigre for the tag out.  It was perfect execution of a pick off play and run down.  Herndon continued to shut down the SAOP hitters in the 3^rd, not allowing a runner past first base.  O’Brien made a sweet play robbing a hit sprinting to his left at second base and fielding the hard hit grounder to make the out.  Daigre and David Snaider scored in the 4^th inning on RBIs by Collins and Ubanoski.  We scored a little insurance in the final frame with back to back hits by David Snaider (Doubled to RF, scoring Tyler Pepper and Thomas Hatfield), and Herndon who drove in Snaider.  Collins pitched the final two inning and did so recording every out via K! 
 
Once again the Crusaders won with timely hitting and perfect pitching.  So far this season our pitching has gone 8 innings allowing 0 hits and striking out 22!  We intend to ride this strength all season long. 

BASEBALL CRUSADERS PERFECT IN HOME OPENER 2/11/19
 
SAT        16
SMM     0
 
St. Anne Baseball Crusaders pitched a shutout in the opening game of the 2019 season.  Literally pitched a shutout…Zac Daigre didn’t allow a ball to be put in play as he pounded the strikezone for 3 innings striking out all 9 batters.  9 up and 9 down.  Daigre pitched the first Perfect Game in recent St. Anne history. 
 
Crusaders got on the board quickly scoring 5 runs in the first inning after an RBI single by David Snaider and a 2 RBI double by Luke Ubanoski.  The Cursaders scored 2 more runs in the second inning by stringing together singles by Michael Herndon (off the centerfield wall), Ubanoski, Kevin Snaider, and Athan Regitz.  However, we left the bases loaded this inning.  Although we were the superior team, leaving runners stranded on base left doubt that we could eliminate them in 3 innings as heavy rain loomed.  Entering the 3^rd inning, a drizzle turned into a steady downpour.  Daigre found his grip on the baseball and continued to throw strikes and dominate the Lions hitters.  The Crusaders scored 9 runs in the 3^rd to end the game via mercy rule.  We knocked the Lions starter out of the game after a single by David Snaider and a double high off the RF wall by Herndon.  The Lions put in their change of pace pitcher.  But the Crusader bats were unfazed.  An infield single by Kevin Snaider and a line drive double by Daigre plated a few more runs and put the runners on base to set up a walk-off opportunity.  Herndon hit his second double off the game with a fly ball to LF.  Then, Eoghan Collins sent a laser bomb to right field that nearly knocked the fence down!  It was a mere 12 inches from leaving the yard.  But it was enough to send the final runs over the plate to end the onslaught.  Final Score: St. Anne Crusaders 16 – St. Mary Magdalene 0.
 
Every single player dressed out for the game was able to receive playing time.  Thomas Hatfield & Michael Brindle got their first At Bats of their St. Anne baseball career.  Had we played more innings every player would have likely had a chance to bat.  It was a great team effort…great pitching and hitting.  But, we cannot be too confident.  There is a particular “water dwelling mammal” waiting in their habitat in the Woodlands for our visit on Wednesday.  Nothing that we accomplished on Monday will matter.  We will have a new pitcher and be facing a more skilled, experienced, and prepared St. Anthony of Padua team.  Padua is the 3 time defending North Division Champion.  This will be an early road test for our squad.  I feel great about our teams ability to beat them.  But we will have to do something that we didn’t get to do on Monday.  Which is Play Defense.  Our defense is untested thus far.  We will need to have dominate pitching again, timely hitting, and make the routine defensive plays to beat Padua.  They will not be intimidated by our opening day score, I promise that.  But this is our year…Go Crusaders!
 
Practice:             Today, Tuesday
                             4 PM – 5:30 PM
                             We may wrap up a little early depending on field conditions.  I mostly just want to work on some base running, situational defense, and hit.  Since this practice sandwiches two games we will not go hard. 
                             No practice on Thursday or Friday.
 
Thank you to Coach Brent Collins for painting the field and keeping GameChanger during the game.  Thank you to Mrs. Herndon for keeping the score book. 
 
See Game Stats below!
 
St. Mary Magdalenemore stats
 
EDIT

PitchingW: Zac Daigre 
Pitches-Strikes: Zac Daigre 39-27 
Groundouts-Flyouts: Zac Daigre 0-0 
First pitch strikes-Batters faced: Zac Daigre 7-9 
 

The 2018 Crusader baseball team went 9-4 with two post season playoff games. Coached by Brian Daigre and Adam Herndon, the team has a solid returning bench for the 2019 season with 13 returning players. 

Baseball is offered for student athletets in grades 6th-8th grade.