Softball | 4/24/2019 6:44:00 PM
Emporia State Hornets (23-24, 12-10 MIAA)
at Northwest Missouri Bearcats (11-24, 6-16 MIAA)
Friday, April 26, 2019 • 2:00 p.m. • Bearcat Field • Maryville, Mo.
Series Record: ESU leads 52-20 •
Last Meeting: ESU 11, NWMSU 10 (April 26, 2018)
Radio: None
Internet Audio: None
Video: None
at Missouri Western Griffons (30-14, 17-5 MIAA)
Saturday, April 27, 2019 • 12:00 p.m. • Griffon Spring Sports Complex • St. Joseph, Mo.
Series Record: ESU leads 61-31 •
Last Meeting: at ESU 9, MWSU 1 (April 20, 2018)
Radio: None
Internet Audio: None
Video: None
Live Stats •
Complete Notes in pdf
Next Up: MIAA Tournament • Wednesday-Saturday, May 1-4
Broncho Softball Stadium • Edmond, Okla.
MEANINGFUL GAMES
Emporia State heads into the weekend as one of seven teams vying for the final four spots in the MIAA Tournament.
LAST AT BAT
In the final non-conference games of the regular season Emporia State managed a split at William Jewell on Tuesday afternoon. The Hornets won the matinee 5-4 and fell 7-5 in the nightcap. Hannah Steeby's two run homer tied the score and ignited a five run sixth inning for the Hornets in game one. The Cardinals were the one's with the big inning in the second game as they scored five run in the fourth to take control. Brylie Basset was three for three with three RBI including a two run homer for the Hornets.
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THE COACHES
April Huddleston-Rosales is 108-113 in her fourth 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. She is 7-1 against Northwest Missouri and 5-3 against the Griffons as a head coach.
Ryan Anderson is 318-300 in his 13th year at Northwest Missouri and 432-371 in his 17th year as a head coach. He is 5-23 against Emporia State.
Jen Bagley Trotter is 628-372 in her 18th season as head coach at Mo. Western. She is 17-42 against Emporia State.
ABOUT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 23-24, 12-10 in the MIAA. As a team the Hornets are batting .276 with a 3.60 team ERA. Hannah Steeby is the only player in the top five of the MIAA in runs, triples, home runs and stolen bases. In the circle Montana Mesler is second in the MIAA in strikeouts. Â
SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
Northwest Missouri is 11-24, 6-16 in the MIAA. They are hitting .311 as a team but have a 6.07 team ERA. Kaitlyn Weis is leading the MIAA with a .802 slugging percentage.
SERIES HISTORY
Emporia State leads the series 52-20 and have won 20 of 23 in the last ten years.
LAST AT BAT WITH NORTHWEST MO.
Emporia State gave up eight runs in the top of the seventh then scored five in the bottom of the inning for an 11-10 walk off win in the MIAA Tournament.
SCOUTING THE GRIFFONS
Missouri Western is 30-1417-5 in the MIAA. They are hitting .311 as a team with a 3.60 team ERA. Morgan Frost and Brea Blanton are both hitting over .400 this season.
SERIES HISTORY
Emporia State leads the series 61-31 with a 21-9 record in the last 30 games.
LAST AT BAT WITH MO. WESTERN
The Hornets swept the Griffons 2-0 and 9-1 on Senior Day at Trusler last year.
HORNETS AT THE BAT
Left fielder Kenzie Garvin (Sr./Lawrence, Kan.) is eighth in the MIAA in stolen bases. She is batting .358 with 24 runs and 13 stolen bases. She has hit safely in ten of 13 games since missing five games with a knee injury. She had an 11 game hitting streak wrapped around the time she missed. She played in 61 games, starting in 60 for the Hornets in 2018. She finished the season with a .301 batting average on 58 hits with 44 runs.
Designated player/outfielder Gabby Biondo (So./Belton, Mo.) is fourth in the MIAA in stolen bases with 20 and is batting .346 with 27 runs and 19 RBI. She has played in 41 games with 36 starts. In 2018, she appeared in 28 games last year.
Shortstop Hannah Steeby (Jr./St. Joseph, Mo.) is third in the MIAA in runs scored, fourth in home runs, fifth in triples and stolen bases, sixth in RBI, and is eighth in slugging percentage. She has a .346 batting average with a team high 40 runs, ten home runs and 36 RBI. She is batting .387 with a double, a triple, two homers, 11 RBI and ten runs in her last nine games. She transferred to Emporia State from Central Methodist where she earned first-team NFCA and NAIA All-American honors in 2018.
First base Rachel Kauss (So./Overland Park, Kan.) is hitting .294 on the year with five doubles and 17 RBI. She has played and started in 46 games this year. She played in 13 games last year. In 16 at bats she had five hits and scored two runs with a .313 batting average.
Catcher Cassidy Beem (So./Lamar, Mo.) is sixth in the MIAA with nine home runs on the season. She is batting .254 with five doubles, 26 runs scored and 30 RBI in 46 starts. She had three home runs in the double header at Northeastern State. She started in 56 of the 57 games she played in last season and finished the season with 14 runs and 13 RBI.
Second base Destiny Ojigoh (So./Kansas City, Mo.) is batting .259 with 20 runs, five doubles, two home runs and 18 RBI. She is the only Hornet to start all 47 games this season. She played and started in 55 games for the Hornets in 2018. She held a .272 batting average with 18 runs on 40 hits. She tacked on three home runs with 34 RBI.
Third base Kailee Odegard (Fr./Blue Springs, Mo.) has a .243 batting average with 16 runs, eight doubles and two triples. She has started in 40 of the 42 games she has played this season.
Center fielder Brittanie Shepherd (Fr./Kansas City, Mo.) is batting .240 and has scored 17 runs with six doubles, a triple and a home run. She is batting .375 with three doubles, a triple and a home run with seven RBI over her last nine games.
Outfielder/designated player Valerie Kinney (Sr./Bennington, Neb.) is batting .278 in 28 games this year with a .333 average in the 13 games she has come off the bench. She is hitting .368 in her last nine games with four doubles and seven RBI. She is the only four year player on the roster and has played in 85 games with 50 starts in her career.
Right fielder Maddy Broxterman (So/Meriden, Kan.) is batting .176 in 25 games with 23 starts. She has nine runs, a double, a triple, a home run and four RBI on the season.
Designated player/pitcher, Kelsey Phillips (Jr./Winfield, Kan.) has scored 15 runs and has three homers and 17 RBI at the plate for the Hornets this season. She had two home runs in game two against Missouri Southern. She played in 31 games, starting in 25 for the Hornets in 2018. She finished the season with a .394 with 16 runs on 26 hits.
EMPORIA STATE PITCHING
Right-handed pitcher Montana Mesler (So./Topeka, Kan.) is second in the MIAA with 119 strike outs on the season, is seventh in innings pitched with 127.1 and tenth with a .264 opponents batting average. She is 9-11 with a 3.74 ERA and ten complete games. She tossed a two-hit shutout with a career high 11 strike outs against Rogers State. It is the most strike outs by a Hornets since 2013. She finished the 2018 season with a 15-13 record in 37 appearances with 31 starts. She threw 20 complete games with a 4.58 era and 124 K's in 198.1 innings.
Right-handed pitcher Kelsey Phillips is third in the MIAA in saves. She is 5-4 with three saves, a 3.38 ERA and eight starts in 18 games. She has a 1.72 ERA in ten relief appearances with a 2-0 record and three saves out of the bullpen. She finished the 2018 season with a 10-11 record in 30 appearances with 18 starts. She threw nine complete games with a 4.95 era and 54 K's in 125.1 innings.
Right-handed pitcher Sydney Righi (Fr./Blue Springs, Mo.) is 6-6 in 15 starts with a 3.82 ERA. She tossed a four hit shutout of Missouri Southern. She was 11-5 with a 2.91 ERA at Blue Springs South HS in her senior season.
Right-handed pitcher Brylie Bassett (Fr./Oskaloosa, Kan.) has a 3.63 ERA in 27.0 innings pitched over 12 appearances with one start.
Right-handed pitcher Mackenzie Thornton (Jr./Grandfield, Okla.) is 1-2 with 3.65 ERA in seven games this season. She was 1-1 with a 7.36 ERA in 13 games last year, including two starts.
THE HORNETS WITH ROSALES
Rosales is in her fourth season as head coach at Emporia State. She holds an 108-113 overall record, 49-47 in the MIAA. She led the Hornets to the 2018 MIAA Tournament championship and her first trip to the NCAA Central Regional Tournament as head coach. Emporia State then advanced to the Central Regional championship game before falling to Minnesota-Duluth. Â
In 2017, Rosales made her first appearance in the MIAA Tournament as head coach, 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.
Before accepting the head coaching role, she had served as an assistant coach for the Hornets the previous seven seasons after her all-conference playing career at Emporia State.
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 12 of the last 15 years and 13 times in the last 23 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. In the 21st Century, Emporia State has claimed the regular season title eight times (2005-08, 2010-12, 2014) and the tournament title nine times (2004-10, 2012, 2018).
