BASEBALL: Rochester Hills Christian ends banner year with first MACS diamond state title
Eagles fly high to capture fourth boys sports state crown during 2018-19 school year
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
Dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
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LAKE ORION – An unforgettable school year ended with another banner and trophy celebration at Rochester Hills Christian.
And it was a first.
The Eagles recently captured their first Michigan Association of Christian Schools Division I baseball state championship with a thrilling 14-9 victory over Clinton Township Faith Christian at Lake Orion’s Friendship Park.
It came at the end of the school year where RHC won four of the five boys sports sponsored by MACS, an association of smaller Christian schools dating back to the late 1970s. The Eagles had finished as the state runner-up in baseball three times over a 40-year span, but finally reached the summit this season.
Rochester Hills Christian captured its first Michigan Association of Christian Schools Division I baseball state championship in 2019, capping a year where the Eagles also won MACS Division I titles in boys soccer, boys basketball and boys golf. Courtesy Photo / Rochester Hills Christian Athletics
Rochester Hills Christian also captured MACS Division I state titles in boys soccer, boys basketball and boys golf this year, with the boys golf also being a first for the school, which opened in the mid-1970s and brought in sports in the late 70s.
“What an amazing school year, really. And we finally put it together and won it in baseball,” said fifth-year RHC head coach Nathan Heatherly, who loses seven of the 14 varsity players to graduation. “We had the pitching and we played our best baseball in the tournament.”
Senior right-hander Michael Childress, who signed to play at NAIA Cornerstone University, pitched stints in the final three games of the season and was dominant from the mound all year. He struck out 12 batters in the state finals, 14 batters in the semifinals and 11 batters in the quarterfinals eight days prior to the finals.
Rochester Hills Christian senior right-hander Michael Childress recorded 37 strikeouts in three postseason appearances in aiding the Eagles’ run to the MACS Division I state title. Courtesy Photo / Rochester Hills Christian Athletics
Senior Alex Spiegel, who pitched a no-hitter during the regular season, as well as freshmen Andrew Heatherly and Ian Huminga — the latter who got the final two outs in the state finals – also pitched in the postseason. Huminga got Faith Christian to pop out to the catcher and recorded a punchout to put the finishing touches on the state championship victory.
“He was the top pitcher in the MACS,” said Heatherly of Childress, who also competes for the Michigan Outlaws travel team. “He was dominant pitching all season. He has great control and (mixes) his pitches well. Michael had (37) strikeouts in the (last three) tournament (games). That does not happen by accident. We also had other guys who can throw. Due to the state (innings) count, he could not pitch every inning in the tournament. We had other guys who can throw strikes. That’s half of the game, especially at a small school like us (75 high school students). You need guys who can throw strikes.”
Rochester Hills Christian defeated Troy Bethany Christian, 7-2, in the state quarterfinals, then followed that up with a 9-4 upset of top-ranked and defending MACS state champion Lake Orion Baptist.
RHC trailed Bethany 2-0 in the third inning before scoring seven unanswered runs to prevail in the quarterfinals.
In the semifinals, the Eagles (17-7) jetted out to a 7-0 lead in the fourth, then held on for the five-run win.
Childress helped his own cause in the finals, going 4-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored. He laced a two-run double with the bases loaded. Heatherly was also 4-for-5 and scored twice, senior three-sport star Adam Patton, who will play basketball at NCAA Division III Hope College, was 2-for-4 with an RBI, while senior catcher Eric Seargent came through with a based-loaded, three-run double to put the Eagles ahead for good in the finals.
“We seemed to have a lot of timely hitting, guys that came through in the clutch,” said Heatherly. “Everything just came into place. We had great leadership with seven seniors, guys like Michael Childress, Adam Patton and Eric Seargent. And six of our seven seniors were starters. We’ll have a lot to replace.
“This was a special senior class of athletes,” continued Heatherly. “What a great group of young men. They worked hard in every sport, played together. They were also so close. To accomplish something like this with all of these state championships in one year is special.”
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