MCC Athletics - Baseball

Hillsdale Free Will Baptist gets Past Manhattan Christian College, 9-3

LAKELAND--No. 2 seed Hillsdale Free Will Baptist College advanced to the winner's bracket of the 2008 NCCAA II National Tournament, Wednesday afternoon, after defeating No. 5 seed Manhattan Christian College, 9-3. Senior starting pitcher John Fish pitched five innings, allowing two earned runs on just five hits to earn the victory for Hillsdale. Jacob Munday went 4-for-4, while designated-hitter Ryan Kennedy went 1-for-2 with a home run and three RBIs. Brandon Buchanon went 2-for-4 with two runs, while Tyler McKracken went 1-for-4 with two RBIs for the Saints. Manhattan Christian's Joshua Tatem went 2-for-4 at the plate, while also taking the loss on the mound as he pitched a complete game for the Crusaders. MCC will take on No. 6 seed North Central University, Thursday at noon, in an elimination game. Hillsdale moves into the winner's bracket and will play No. 4 seed Cincinnati Christian University at 2:30 p.m.

Manhattan Christian Blanks North Central University, 9-0

LAKELAND--Manhattan Christian College is still alive in the 2008 NCCAA II National Tournament. The Crusaders defeated No. 6 seed North Central University, 9-0, Thursday afternoon behind Joshua Tatem's big day at the plate. Tatem went 4-for-4 with two runs, three RBIs, and two triples to help guide the Crusaders' offense. Justin Renhard also had a big day for MCC, going 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs, including a home run. Zach Anderson went 2-for-3 with two runs and a double, while Joshua Lewis also had two hits, scoring one run and knocking another in. Manhattan Christian will battle No. 4 seed Cincinnati Christian University, Friday, at 2:30 p.m. in an elimination game. North Central University is now eliminated from national contention and will play a consolation game versus a team yet to be determined, Friday, at 11:00 a.m.

Manhattan Christian Eliminates Cincinnati Christian, 9-4

LAKELAND--Trailing 4-2 in the sixth inning, Manhattan Christian College rallied to score seven runs in the sixth and eventually defeat Cincinnati Christian University, 9-4, in the 2008 NCCAA II National Tournament. Josh Tatem once again shined for the Crusaders, going 3-for-4 with an RBI, while Kevin Hubbard went 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Zack Anderson went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and also picked up the win on the mound, in three innings of relief pitching allowing one run on two hits. Josh Day went 2-for-3 with an RBI for Cincinnati Christian University, which takes fourth place overall. Manhattan Christian will now play Hillsdale Free Will Baptist College in an elimination game, Friday night, at 7:30 p.m. The winner will advance to the NCCAA II National Championship game, Saturday, starting at 1:00 p.m.

Hillsdale Defeats Manhattan Christian, 6-2

LAKELAND--After dropping a tough game to No. 1 seed Southeastern University earlier in the evening, Hillsdale Free Will Baptist rebounded Friday night to defeat Manhattan Christian College, 6-2. The Saints eliminated MCC from national contention behind a strong pitching performance from Aaron Smith. Smith pitched a complete game, allowing just two runs on eight hits while striking out six Crusaders. Cody Davis went 2-for-2 with a home run, two runs scored, and two RBIs. Ryan Kennedy went 2-for-3 with two RBIs as the Saints scratched out six runs on eight hits with no errors on defense. Joshua Tatem managed two more hits for MCC in the game, finishing the tournament 8-for-12 overall with four RBIs, three runs scored, and two triples. Manhattan Christian College will take third place in the national rankings this season. Hillsdale Free Will Baptist will play Southeastern University Saturday, starting at 1:00 p.m., for the NCCAA II National Championship. Southeastern defeated the Saints on Friday, 12-0, and these two teams have met for the national title three out of the past four years. Southeastern is 2-0 versus Hillsdale in national title games. The Fire defeated the Saints 17-9 in 2005, and 14-6 in last year's title game. Hillsdale Free Will Baptist will have to defeat Southeastern twice on Saturday in order to win the national championship.