NCAA Central Regional Tournament
Emporia State Hornets (29-29, 14-12 MIAA)
vs. #25 Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs (41-13, 20-6 NSIC)
Friday, May 11, 2018 • 1:00 p.m. • Maynard R. Johnson Field • Winona, Minn.
Series: Tied 4-4 Last: UMD 13, ESU 4 (March 16, 2018)
Radio: KFFX (104.9FM) • Live Audio
Live Stats • Live Video • Complete Notes in pdf
MAY MADNESS
Emporia State advances to the second round of the NCAA Central Regional Tournament where they will face Minnesota-Duluth. The eighth-seeded Hornets play the fourth-seeded Bulldogs on Friday, May 11 at 1:00 p.m.
LAST AT BAT
Emporia State opened up the NCAA Central Regional Tournament with a 3-1 win over top-seeded Winona State on Thursday. Cassidy Beem drove in the first run of the game on her bases-loaded single to left field to give the Hornets an early 1-0 lead. Danielle Sprinkle picked up an RBI single in the fifth inning and the Hornets scored their third run on a bases-loaded hit by pitch. Kenzie Garvin was two for four with a run scored and a stolen base. Danielle Sprinkle and Cassidy Beem each had an RBI for the Hornets. McKenna Davis reached base safely four times in the game with two hits and a run scored. Montana Melser pitched a compelte game in the circle, allowing one run over seven innings with two strikeouts and stranded six baserunners.
THE COACHES
April Huddleston-Rosales is 84-87 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 1-3 against Minnesota-Duluth as a head coach.
Jen Walter is 111-50 in her third year as head coach for the Bulldogs. She is 3-1 against Emporia State.
ABOUT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 29-29 and making thier 13th trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Hornets have won 14 of their last 15 games and were the first eight seed to win the MIAA Tournament. They lead the MIAA with 98 stolen bases and are ranked second in runs scored with 291 and 84 doubles. Danielle Sprinkle is tied for second with former Hornet Miranda Campbell for the ESU single season record in doubles with 20 on the year. Montana Mesler is fifth in the conference with 113 strikeouts and has pitched 187.1 innings this season.
SCOUTING MINNESOTA-DULUTH
The Bulldogs are 41-13 on the season and went 20-6 in the NSIC. They are the #4 seed in the Central Region and ranked #25 in the NFCA National Poll. They are batting .333 as a team on the season. Hannah Schmoll is hitting .459 on 85 hits and 40 RBI. In the circle, Valerie Hohol is 18-7 on the year with a 3.07 ERA and 85 strikeouts.
SERIES HISTORY
Emporia State is tied 4-4 with the Bulldogs in the all-time series. This will be the first meeting between the two teams in postseason play.
LAST AT BAT AGAINST UMD
Emporia State fell 13-4 to Minnesota-Duluth on day one of the ESU St. Patrick's Classic.
UP NEXT
Depending on their outcome, the Hornets would advance to the championship game on Saturday, May 12 or face an elimination game on Friday, May 11 at 6:00 p.m. with the winner moving on to the championship.
HORNET HITTING
The Hornets have a .299 team batting average on the season. Emporia State has scored 291 runs on 473 hits with 84 doubles, eight triples, and 20 home runs for a .400 team slugging percentage.
Danielle Sprinkle garnered the final Louisville/Slugger NFCA Division II National Player of the Week honor of 2018 after hitting .714 with seven RBI, two doubles, and a home run in the MIAA Tournament. She 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 leads the MIAA and ranks seventh nationally with 20 doubles on the season, while batting .371 and slugging .629 with 49 RBI. Her 20 doubles on the season is second on Emporia State's single-season record.
Caitlin VanVleck has 53 hits on the year for a .315 batting average. She has scored 38 runs on the season, including the game-winning run against #10 Southern Arkansas. Annie Rockley has 37 runs scored on the season for the Hornets while hitting .335 with eight doubles, three triples, and four home runs. She is 19 for 25 on stolen base attempts. In the MIAA Tournament, she hit .375 with eight RBI, two doubles, and had a three-run home run in the MIAA Championship game.
Hailey Cope is tied for third in the MIAA with 17 doubles on the season. She has scored 33 runs on 42 hits with 26 RBI, and a home run. She scored the final run of the Hornets' 6-0 win in the MIAA Championship game.
Kenzie Garvin is fourth in the conference with 23 stolen bases on the season, while hitting .306 with 44 runs scored. Throughout the MIAA Tournament, she hit .353 with a double, a triple, and eight runs scored.
EMPORIA STATE PITCHING
Emporia State has a 5.26 team ERA with 193 strikeouts, 31 complete games, and a .297 opponent batting average.
Montana Mesler is 14-12 with a 4.56 ERA and 113 strikeouts in 187.1 innings pitched. She is tied for second in the MIAA with 20 complete games pitched this year.
Kelsey Phillips has a 10-10 record in 120.1 innings with 53 strikeouts, nine complete games pitched, and a save. From April 5 to April 27, she won eight straight decisions in the circle for the Hornets.
TOURNAMENTS WITH HUDDLESTON-ROSALES
Huddleston-Rosales is 36-32 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.
After leading the Hornets to their second straight MIAA Championship game as an eighth seed, she won her first MIAA Tournament Championship as a head coach in 2018. The Hornets became the first eighth seed to win the MIAA Tournament Championship, going 4-1 in the tournament.
SUCCESS IN MAY
Emporia State has played in 13 NCAA Tournaments with a 36-25 (.590) overall record in NCAA Tournament play. The Hornets are 20-13 in NCAA tournament elimination games all-time. Emporia State has played in 12 of the last 16 MIAA Tournament championship games with nine titles. Since 2001 the Hornets are 57-19 (.750) in MIAA Tournament play with a 56-15 (.789) record over the last 15 tournaments.
