Baseball Game Preview: Zeeland East Chix vs. Unity Christian Crusaders

For the second straight game, Zeeland East will face off against Unity Christian. The Chix will welcome the Crusaders at 4:15 p.m. on Thursday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Zeeland East has seven straight wins, Unity Christian has four straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.

Zeeland East came out on top against Unity Christian on Tuesday thanks in part to the team's impressive four-run fifth inning. The Chix walked away with an 8-5 victory over the Crusaders.

Derek Baxter

Batters Struck Out

05/06/25 @ Unity Christian	6
04/29/25 vs Zeeland West	7
04/22/25 vs Spring Lake	5

Derek Baxter made a big impact no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out six batters over five innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off five hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with three RBI and one triple. That triple marked the first that he has hit this season.

In other batting news, Zeeland East let Max Mulder and Quincy Thome run wild. Mulder got on base in all four of his plate appearances with two stolen bases and two runs, while Thome went 3-for-4 with two runs, one double, and one RBI. Those two stolen bases gave Mulder a new career-high. Ryan Kuzma was another key player, going 1-for-3 with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI.

Zeeland East's win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 17-4. As for Unity Christian, their loss dropped their record down to 12-5.