Emporia State Hornets (20-28, 10-12 MIAA)
vs. Northwest Missouri Bearcats (25-13, 16-6 MIAA)
Thursday, April 19, 2018 • 4:00 p.m. [DH] • Trusler Sports Complex • Emporia, Kan.
Series: ESU leads 49-20 Last: ESU 5, NWMSU 1 (April 28, 2017, MIAA Tourney)
vs. Missouri Western Griffons (23-24, 14-8 MIAA)
Friday, April 20, 2018 • 5:00 p.m. [DH] • Trusler Sports Complex • Emporia, Kan.
Series: ESU leads 59-31 Last: ESU 17, MWSU 10 (Feb. 9, 2018)
Up Next: MIAA Tournament • April 26-28, 2018 • Oklahoma City, Okla.
Live Stats
REGULAR SEASON FINALE
The threat of inclement weather has moved up Emporia State's regular season finale. The Hornets will host Northwest Missouri on Thursday, April 19 and then the Hornets will recognize their seven seniors for Senior Day on Friday, April 20 against Missouri Western.
LAST AT BAT
Emporia State extended their win streak to five games as they swept the Jennies at home with a 2-1 win in the opener and a 4-2 win in game two. In game one, Kelsey Phillips picked up her fourth straight win as she allowed only three hits in seven innings. Katy Rae Nordman had two RBI and a double. In game two, Nordman was three for three with an RBI and a double. Danielle Sprinkle hit her sixth home run of the year for the Hornets.
THE COACHES
April Huddleston-Rosales is 75-86 in her third year as the head coach at Emporia State. She served as an assistant for seven seasons. She was a member of both the Hornets national runner-up teams in 2006 and 2008, and was named First Team All-MIAA at shortstop her senior year. She is 4-1 against Northwest Missouri and 3-3 against the Griffons as a head coach.
Ryan Anderson is 303-270 in his 12th year as head coach for the Bearcats. He is 5-20 against Emporia State.
Jen Bagley Trotter is 596-353 in her 17th season as head coach for the Griffons. She is 17-40 against Emporia State.
ABOUT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 20-28 overall and 10-12 in the MIAA. The Hornets are hitting .293 as a team with a 4.37 ERA. They lead the MIAA with 89 stolen bases in 48 games. The Hornets are fifth in the MIAA with 65 doubles this season. Danielle Sprinkle is third in the MIAA and ranks 28th nationally with 15 doubles and is fifth in the conference with 37 RBI. Annie Rockley is tenth in the MIAA with 33 runs scored and has 51 hits on the season. Montana Mesler is seventh in the conference with 92 strikeouts and has pitched 147.1 innings this season.
SCOUTING NORTHWEST MO.
The Bearcats are 25-13 on the season and 16-6 in MIAA play. They are hitting a league best .332 as a team and have a team ERA of 2.54 on the season. Kaitlyn Weish is second in the conference with 13 home runs and 45 RBI on the season. Emporia State leads the all-time series 49-12.
SCOUTING MO. WESTERN
The Griffons are 23-24 overall and 14-8 in the MIAA. As a team, they have 226 RBI which ranks second in the league. Shelby Uhl is second in the MIAA with 41 runs scored on the year. The Hornets lead the all-time series 59-31.
UP NEXT
Emporia State will await their postseason fate as the final regular season weekend concludes. Currently, the Hornets are seventh in the MIAA with the top eight teams advancing to the conference tournament in Oklahoma City, Okla.
HORNET HITTING
The Hornets have a .293 team batting average on the season. Emporia State has scored 229 runs on 385 hits with 65 doubles, six triples, and 16 home runs for a .388 team slugging percentage.
Danielle Sprinkle was named the MIAA Softball Hitter of the Week on Feb. 13 after hitting .571 with a 1.214 slugging percentage with seven RBI in four games as Emporia State went 3-1 at the Ark.-Monticello D2 Challenge. She is tied for third in the MIAA with 15 doubles on the season, while batting .343 and slugging .579 with 37 RBI.
Caitlin VanVleck has 44 hits on the year for a .317 batting average. She has scored 29 runs on the season, including the game-winning run against #10 Southern Arkansas. Annie Rockley has 33 runs scored for the Hornets while hitting .340 with five doubles, three triples, and three home runs. She is 18 for 22 on stolen base attempts.
Hailey Cope is tied for third in the MIAA and 28th nationally with 15 doubles on the season. She has scored 27 runs on 37 hits with 24 RBI, and a home run.
Kenzie Garvin is fourth in the conference with 20 stolen bases on the season, while hitting .298 with 31 runs scored.
EMPORIA STATE PITCHING
Emporia State has a 4.37 team ERA with 162 strikeouts, 25 complete games, and a .308 opponent batting average.
Montana Mesler is 9-12 with a 3.71 ERA and 92 strikeouts in 147.1 innings pitched. She is fourth in the MIAA with 15 complete games pitched this year.
Kelsey Phillips has a 6-9 record in 99.2 innings with 48 strikeouts, seven complete games pitched, and a save. Currently, she has won her last four decisions in the circle for the Hornets.
Destiny Ojigoh is 4-6 with a 5.82 ERA and an opponent batting average of .363 in 55.1 innings pitched.
TOURNAMENTS WITH HUDDLESTON-ROSALES
Huddleston-Rosales is 31-31 in tournament play as head coach at Emporia State. The Hornets went 4-1 at the St. Cloud Indoor Tournament and 2-2 at the Ark.-Monticello Tournament in 2016. In the 2017 season, Huddleston-Rosales went 1-4 at the Southeastern Oklahoma State Tournament, 4-2 at the ASU George McCorkle Challenge, 5-1 at the 8-States Classic and 3-3 at the St. Cloud Indoor Tournament. The Hornets went 2-3 at the Lubbock Sports Classic to open the 2018 season, followed by a 3-1 outing at the Ark.-Monticello D-II Challenge in Bentonville, Ark. The Hornets finished 1-3 at the 2018 ESU 6-State Classic and picked up their second win against a ranked opponent with a walk-off win against #10 Southern Arkansas. At the ESU St. Patrick's Classic, the Hornets finished 1-4 and scored 28 runs in the tournament.
In 2017, Huddleston-Rosales made her first appearance in the MIAA Tournament as head coach, going 4-2 and finishing second, losing to #1 seed Central Oklahoma in the championship game. She led the Hornets to their first MIAA Tournament championship appearance since 2013.
SUCCESS IN MAY
Emporia State has played in 12 NCAA Tournaments with a 35-25 (.583) overall record in NCAA Tournament play. The Hornets are 20-13 in NCAA tournament elimination games all-time. Emporia State has played in 11 of the last 15 MIAA Tournament championship games with eight titles. Since 2001 the Hornets are 53-18 (.746) in MIAA Tournament play with a 52-14 (.788) record over the last 14 tournaments.
HORNET HISTORY
Emporia State has finished as the NCAA Division II National Runners-up twice, in 2006 and 2008. The Hornets have qualified for NCAA Regional play in 11 of the last 14 years and 12 times in the last 22 seasons. The Hornets won the NAIA National Championship in 1983 and 1984 and won the AIAW National Championship in 1980.
The Hornets were MIAA regular season champions four straight years from 2005-08 and MIAA Tournament champions seven straight years running from 2004-10. Emporia State has claimed the regular season title (2005-08, 2010-12, 2014) and the tournament title (2004-10, 2012) eight times each in the 21st Century.
