NCAA Central Regional Tournament
Emporia State Hornets (28-29, 14-12 MIAA)
vs. Winona State Warriors (45-5, 20-2 NSIC)
Thursday, May 11, 2018 • 2:00 p.m. • Maynard R. Johnson Field • Winona, Minn.
Series: ESU leads 9-5 Last: WSU 8, at ESU 7 (March 18, 2018)
Radio: KFFX (104.9FM) •
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MAY MADNESS
Emporia State returns to the NCAA Tournament for the 13th time in school history, but the first time since 2014. They will take on #5 Winona State.
LAST AT BAT
Danielle Sprinkle went four for four, Annelise Rockley had four RBI including a three run homer and Montana Messler tossed a four hit shutout as Emporia State defeated Central Oklahoma 6-0 in the winner take all MIAA Championship game. Sprinkle's RBI single put the Hornets on the board in the top of the first. Emporia State got an unearned run in the second inning to go up 2-0. Messler retired the first six batters she faced before giving up two hits and stranding both of the Bronchos in the third inning. The Hornets came out in the top of the fourth and scored four runs thanks to a three run home run by Rockley and a McKenna Davis RBI double that made it 6-0. Messler then retired 12 of the final 14 UCO hitters as Emporia State won the MIAA Tournament for the first time since 2014.
THE COACHES
April Huddleston-Rosales is 83-87 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 0-2 against Winona State as a head coach.
Greg Jones is 747-254-4 in his 18th year as head coach for the Warriors. He is 5-7 against Emporia State and 0-3 in the NCAA Tournament against the Hornets.
ABOUT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 28-29 and making thier 13th trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Hornets have won 13 of their last 14 games to become the first eight seed to win the MIAA Tournament. They lead the MIAA with 97 stolen bases and are ranked second in runs scored with 288 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 111 strikeouts and has pitched 180.1 innings this season.
SCOUTING WINONA STATE
The Warriors are 45-5 on the seasonand went 20-2 in the NSIC. They are the #1 seed in the Central Region and ranked #5 in the NFCA National Poll. They are batting .348 as a team led by Lani VanZyl's .485 average with 13 home runs and 589 RBI. Jordyn Kleman is 19-1 on the year with a 1.79 ERA and 160 strikeouts.
SERIES HISTORY
Emporia State leads the all-time series 9-5 overall with a 3-0 advantage in NCAA Tournament play. The Hornets defeated the Warriors twice in the 2008 regional to advance to the World Series.
LAST AT BAT AGAINST WINONA
Emporia State stranded 17 runners in an 8-7 loss to then #7 Winona State in 11 innings in the final game of the ESU St. Patrick's Day Classic.
UP NEXT
Emporia State will play either Minn.-Duluth or Ark. Tech on Friday, May 11 with the winners meeting at 1:00 p.m. and the losers playing at 3:30 p.m.
HORNET HITTING
The Hornets have a .299 team batting average on the season. Emporia State has scored 288 runs on 464 hits with 84 doubles, eight triples, and 20 home runs for a .402 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 .373 and slugging .639 with 48 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 .321 batting average. She has scored 38 runs on the season, including the game-winning run against #10 Southern Arkansas. In her last 14 games, VanVleck is hitting .385 on 15 hits and 13 runs scored.
Annie Rockley has 37 runs scored on the season for the Hornets while hitting .341 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 32 runs on 41 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 22 stolen bases on the season, while hitting .302 with 43 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 5.34 team ERA with 191 strikeouts, 30 complete games, and a .299 opponent batting average.
Montana Mesler is 13-12 with a 4.69 ERA and 111 strikeouts in 180.1 innings pitched. She is fourth in the MIAA with 19 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 35-32 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 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 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.
