NCAA Central Regional Tournament Championship
Emporia State Hornets (30-29, 14-12 MIAA)
vs. Minnesota-Duluth/Arkansas Tech
Saturday, May 12, 2018 • 3:30 p.m. • Maynard R. Johnson Field • Winona, Minn.
Radio: KFFX (104.9FM) • Live Audio
Live Stats • Live Video • Complete Notes in pdf
CHAMPIONSHIP SATURDAY
Emporia State is set to play in the NCAA Central Regional Championship on Saturday, May 12. The Hornets will face the winner of Minn.-Duluth or Ark. Tech at 3:30 p.m.
LAST AT BAT
Emporia State secured a trip to the NCAA Central Regional Championship with a 1-0 win over Minnesota-Duluth on Friday. The Hornets advanced to their first NCAA Regional Championship game since 2014. In the top of the fourth, Hailey Cope led the inning off with a double to right center and advanced to third on a passed ball. Danielle Sprinkle followed with a sac fly RBI to give the Hornets a 1-0 lead. The one run would prove to be enough as Montana Mesler held the Bulldogs scoreless in the game. Mesler pitched her second shutout of the season, going seven innings and giving up four hits. She used her defense and five strikeouts to strand nine baserunners in the game.
THE COACHES
April Huddleston-Rosales is 85-87 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 2-3 against Minnesota-Duluth and 1-4 against Arkansas Tech as a head coach.
Jen Walter is 111-51 in her third year as head coach for the Bulldogs. She is 3-2 against Emporia State.
Kristina McSweeney is 228-123 in her sixth season as head coach for the Golden Suns. She is 5-1 against Emporia State.
ABOUT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 30-29 and making thier 13th trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Hornets have won 15 of their last 16 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 292 and 85 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 118 strikeouts. In the first two games of the Central Regional Tournament, Mesler has allowed one run over 14 innings.
SCOUTING MINNESOTA-DULUTH
The Bulldogs are 41-14 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. Hannah Schmoll is hitting .457 on 86 hits and 40 RBI. In the circle, Valerie Hohol is 18-8 on the year with a 2.98 ERA and 87 strikeouts. The Hornets lead 5-4 in the all-time series.
SCOUTING ARKANSAS TECH
The Golden Suns have an overall record of 44-18 and went 30-14 in GAC play and won the conference tournament. Playing as the fifth seed in the regional tournament, the Golden Suns have a team ERA of 2.80. Megan Goodnight is 17-5 on the season with a 1.40 ERA and 71 strikeouts. Arkansas Tech leads the all-time series 5-3.
UP NEXT
With a win in the championship game on Saturday, the Hornets would advance to the NCAA Super Regional Tournament. If the Hornets lose, they will play a winner-take-all championship game scheduled for Sunday, May 13.
HORNET HITTING
The Hornets have a .297 team batting average on the season. Emporia State has scored 292 runs on 478 hits with 85 doubles, eight triples, and 20 home runs for a .398 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 .366 and slugging .622 with 50 RBI. Her 20 doubles on the season is second on Emporia State's single-season record.
Caitlin VanVleck has 54 hits on the year for a .316 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 .332 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 third in the MIAA with 18 doubles on the season. She has scored 34 runs on 43 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 5.17 team ERA with 198 strikeouts, 32 complete games, and a .295 opponent batting average.
Montana Mesler is 15-12 with a 4.40 ERA and 118 strikeouts in 194.1 innings pitched. She is second in the MIAA with 21 complete games pitched this year. Through the first two games of the NCAA Regional Tournament, she has allowed one run through 14 innings and picked up her second shutout of the season against Minnesota-Duluth.
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 37-32 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 37-25 (.597) 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.
