Softball | 4/8/2019 1:03:00 PM
Emporia State Hornets (14-21, 6-8 MIAA)
vs. Rogers State Hillcats (27-12, 14-6 Heartland)
Tuesday, April 9, 2019 • 3:00 p.m. (DH)
Turnbull Field/Trusler Sports Complex • Emporia, Kan.
Series Record: RSU leads 2-0 •
Last Meeting: at RSU 4, ESU 3 (3/6/18)
Radio: KVOE 96.9FM/1400AM (G1) KFFX 104.9FM (G2)
Internet Audio: kvoe.com (
G1) (
G2)
Internet Video:
themiaanetwork.com/esuhornets
Next Up: vs. Ft. Hays State • Friday, April 12, 2019 • 3:00 p.m.
Turnbull Field/Trusler Sports Complex • Emporia, Kan.
HOME SWEET HOME
Emporia State returns to the Trusler Sports Complex for a six game home stand beginning with a non-conference double header with Rogers State.
LAST AT BAT
Emporia State took Central Missouri to extra innings twice before falling in each game in Warrensburg, Mo. The Hornets fell 4-3 in nine innings in the matinee and 3-2 in eight innings in the night cap.
In game one Emporia State took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third on RBI singles from Gabby Biondo and Rachel Kauss. UCM scored single runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings to take a 3-2 lead. Destiny Ojigoh homered in the sixth to send it to extra innings. The Jennies would win it on a squeeze bunt in the bottom of the ninth.
In game two UCM took a 2-0 lead in the fourth. Cassidy Beem got an RBI ground out in the sixth and Hannah Steeby tied it in the seventh with an RBI single before UCM won it in the eighth.
Â
THE COACHES
April Huddleston-Rosales is 99-110 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, and was named First Team All-MIAA at shortstop her senior year. She is 0-2 against Rogers State.
Andrea Vaughan is 111-91 in her fourth year as head coach at Rogers State. She is 2-0 against Emporia State.
ABOUT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 14-21, 6-8 in the MIAA and are 6-2 at home this year. As a team the Hornets are second in the MIAA in stolen bases with 59 as Gabby Biondo's 13 steals ranks fourth in the league. Hannah Steeby is the only player in the top ten of the MIAA in both home runs and stolen bases. In the circle Montana Mesler is second in the MIAA with 92 strikeouts. Â
SCOUTING THE HILLCATS
Rogers State is 27-12 going into Monday's games with Northeastern State and 14-6 in the Heartland Conference. They have gone 9-1 against the MIAA so far this season. Danelle Day is batting .353 with 14 homers and 36 RBI. Andrea Morales is 19-6 with a 1.43 ERA and 177 strikeouts in the circle.
SERIES HISTORY
The Hillcats lead the all-time series 2-0 with the only meeting coming last year in Claremore, Okla.
     Â
LAST AT BAT WITH ROGERS STATE
Emporia State was swept in a double header at Rogers State, falling 3-1 and 4-3 in Claremore, Okla.
UP NEXT
The Hornets play their final regular season home games this weekend as they play host to Ft. Hays State and Neb.-Kearney at the Trusler Sports Complex. The weekend is scheduled to start at 3:00 p.m. Friday against Ft. Hays State.
HORNETS AT THE BAT
Left fielder Kenzie Garvin is batting .361 with 16 runs and ten stolen bases. She has a six games hitting streak although she missed five games in the middle of it with a knee injury. She is tenth in the MIAA in stolen bases ten. 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 is batting .368 with 19 runs and 15 RBI. She has played in 29 games with 24 starts and is ranked fourth in the MIAA with 13 stolen bases. She is batting .441 over the last ten games with a .618 slugging percentage. In 2018, she appeared in 28 games for the Hornets.
Outfielder Maddy Broxterman is batting .237 in 18 games with 16 starts. She has eight runs, a double, a triple, a home run and three RBI on the season.
First base Rachel Kauss is hitting .313 on the year with three doubles and 13 RBI. She played in 13 games for the Hornets in 2018. In 16 at bats she had five hits and scored two runs with a .313 batting average.
Shortstop Hannah Steeby has a .313 batting average with a team high 28 runs, seven home runs and 24 RBI. She is third in the MIAA in home runs and eighth in stolen bases, the only player in the league to rank in the top ten in both categories. She is batting .353 with 11 runs and 10 RBI in her last ten games. She transferred from Central Methodist. In 2018, she earned first-team All-American honors from the NFCA and NAIA and was the Heart of America Conference Player of the Year.
Catcher Cassidy Beem has a team high 24 RBI in 25 starts this season and is hitting .275 with five doubles and six home runs on the season. She is tied for fourth in the MIAA in home runs 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 is batting .252 with 16 runs, four doubles, two home runs and 15 RBI. 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 has a .236 batting average with 12 runs on 17 hits including six doubles and a triple. She has started in 29 of the 30 games she has played this season.
Outfielder Brittanie Shepherd has scored 12 runs and has four doubles among her 16 hits on the season.
Designated player/pitcher, Kelsey Phillips has scored 14 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
Montana Mesler is 6-10 with a 4.05 ERA and eight complete games. She is second in the MIAA with 92 strikeouts on the season. 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.
Sydney Righi is 3-5 in ten starts for the Hornets. She tossed a four hit shutout of Missouri Southern. She has lowered her ERA to 3.77 after going 3-1 with a 1.19 ERA in her last five appearances. She was 11-5 with a 2.91 ERA at Blue Springs South HS in her senior season.
Kelsey Phillips is 4-3 with a 3.35 ERA in 12 games with six starts. She is allowing batters to hit just .246 against her to rank fifth in the MIAA. 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.
Brylie Bassett has a 2.85 ERA in 19.2 innings pitched over nine appearances with one start.
Mackenzie Thornton is 1-2 with 4.31 ERA in five appearances 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 99-110 overall record, 43-45 in the MIAA.
In 2018, Rosales led the Hornets to the MIAA Tournament championship and her first trip to the NCAA Central Regional Tournament as head coach. The Hornets finished the regular season on a nine game winning streak and extended that to a 12 game streak in the MIAA Tournament. 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, 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.
In 2016, Rosales led the Hornets to a 21-32 record, 9-17 in the MIAA in her first season as head coach after taking over in November of 2015.
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).
