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LACEY, Wash. – After rain delayed the celebration another week, the Crusaders finally got to celebrate career win No. 600.

Aaron Vaughn struck out six batters on the hill and benefited from plenty of offense early as the Northwest Nazarene baseball team beat St. Martin's 7-5 in the nightcap of the two teams' Great Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader Thursday afternoon, giving coach Rocke Musgraves his 600^th career victory.

"I honestly appreciate the attention and all the well-wishers, but I don't think coaches really pay attention to that stuff," Musgraves said. "Right now I'm trying to figure out how to get my team to play up to their ability.

"God gives us ability then it's up to us to decide how we are going to use that ability."

The Crusaders tried for win No. 600 at home last weekend but rain suspended play in a twinbill against visiting Montana State Billings, leaving NNU's coach stuck on 599.

NNU tried again to give its coach milestone win No. 600 in the opener Thursday as Colben McGuire struck out six and scattered four hits in a complete-game effort, but the Crusaders simply couldn't come up with the clutch hit, falling 2-1 to the host Saints.

"We have to start developing true confidence in ourselves and each other," Musgraves said of the opening-game setback.

But the Crusaders (12-17 overall, 8-8 GNAC) confidence shone through early in Thursday's second game as they erupted offensive as Tate Glasgow and Sam Cook each doubled home a run in the top of the first.

NNU then pushed the lead to 7-0 with a five-run rally in the top of the third as Josh Hatfield singled home a pair of runs, Kyle Thomson walked to force in a run, and Ryan Johnson and Anthony Flatt each added an RBI single.

St. Martin's (9-22, 6-12) chipped away with three runs in the third, a run in the fourth and another in the seventh before Vaughn finally iced the win, improving to a GNAC-best 7-1 on the season on the hill.

Flatt had a pair of hits in the win, his fourth straight game with two hits for NNU, and Glasgow also had a pair of hits for the Crusaders, who play two more games Friday at St. Martin's, with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. (MT).

In the day's opener, the Saints didn't get clutch hits either, but did plate two runs as Travis Shaw singled and later scored on an error in the first, and Jake Huskey doubled and scored on a wild pitch in the fifth.

The Crusaders closed to within a run as Flatt, who led NNU's offense with two hits, led off the seventh with a double, moved to third on a Tate Glasgow sacrifice bunt and scored on a Sam Cook sacrifice fly.

McGuire retired the next six Saint batters in order, giving his offense a chance, and NNU did get a hit in both the eighth and ninth, but could not push another run across.