Baseball | 3/17/2022 6:36:00 PM
Emporia State Hornets (8-15, 2-8 MIAA)
vs. Northwest Missouri Bearcats (5-16, 1-9 MIAA)
Saturday, Mar. 19 (DH) • 1:00 p.m./4:00 p.m. • Glennen Field • Emporia, Kan.
Sunday, Mar. 20 • 1:00 p.m. • Glennen Field • Emporia, Kan.
Series Record: ESU leads 67-41
Last Meeting: ESU 11, NWMSU 3 (3/7/21)
Video:
The MIAA Network Live Stats:
esuhornets.com
Complete Notes in pdf
Up Next: Northwestern Oklahoma • Mar. 22, 2022 • 5:00 p.m.
Glennen Field • Emporia, Kan.
SPRING BREAK WRAP UP
Emporia State plays host to Northwest Missouri in a three-game slate to close out spring break.
LAST AT BAT
The Hornets played host to PIttsburg State in a midweek matchup at Glennen Field. The Gorillas recorded three home runs throughout the game and held Emporia State to only one run on three hits as the Hornets fell 7-1.
THE COACHES
Seth Wheeler is in his fourth season as the Hornets head coach and enters with a 66-69 record through three-plus seasons at the helm. He is 4-5 against Northwest Missouri.
Darin Loe is 544-575 in his 23rd season at Northwest Missouri and 700-709 in his 28th year overall. He is 30-53 against Emporia State.
ABOUT THE HORNETS
The Hornets are 8-15, 2-8 on the season. Emporia State is led by four hitters that post a batting average of .300 and above.
Noah Geekie leads the way with a .400 batting average and
TJ Racherbaumer is close behind batting .375. They are joined above .300 by
Sam Chaput and
Blake Carroll who are batting .330 and .302 respectively. Chaput and Carroll lead the Hornets with four home runs each while being second with five doubles each. On the mound, the Hornets are highlighted by upperclassmen
Aaron Bechtel,
Jared Kengott and
Jarrett Seaton who have each made six or more appearances for the Hornets this season.
SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
Northwest Missouri is 5-16, 1-9 on the season. The Bearcats offense is led by two hitters with averages above .300 and an OPS above .950. Drew Mackie is batting .338 and Jacob Pinkerton is batting .308. Mackie also leads the team with 25 hits and 8 doubles. Pinkerton has a team-high 3 home runs and 2 triples. On the mound, the Bearcats are led by Max Spitzmiller who has started 6 games while recording a 3.15 ERA in 45.2 innings pitched with 47 strikeouts. In relief, Northwest Missouri is led by Jacob Gajic and Joshua Mitchell who have 10 and 12 appearances respectively.
SERIES HISTORY
Emporia State leads the all-time series 67-41 and have won four of the last five meetings.
LAST TIME AGAINST NWMSU
Last season, Emporia State took a trip to Maryville for an MIAA series. The Hornets took two out of three from the Bearcats. ESU won the first game 10-0 in seven innings before NWMSU came back for a 2-1 walk-off win in the bottom of the ninth of the second game. Emporia State scored eight runs in the final three innings, highlighted by a two-run home run from
Quinn Cherry on the way to the 11-3 win in the series finale.
UP NEXT
Emporia State will continue their homestand with a midweek matchup against Northwestern Oklahoma on Tuesday, March 22. First pitch from Trusler is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.
WHEELS ON THE BUS
Seth Wheeler is in his fourth season at the helm of the Hornet Baseball program. Wheeler has a career record of 66-69. Before taking over as the head coach of Emporia State, Wheeler spent the previous three seasons as the pitching coach at Emporia State. During this time, the Hornet pitching staff held the second lowest ERA in the MIAA. The success has continued since taking over as ESU has ranked top-five in two of his first three seasons in ERA. While the 2020 season was cut short, Emporia State has reached the MIAA tournament in both of Wheeler's full seasons at the helm.
A 2014 graduate of Central Missouri, Wheeler was an honorable mention All-MIAA selection at catcher for the Mules. He hit .324 as UCM won the MIAA Regular Season Championship his senior year. He played two years at Butler CC, earning All-Jayhawk Conference honors as a sophomore.
OUT IN THE FIELD
Outfielder
Blake Carroll (Sr./Wichita, KS) has played multiple positons for the Hornets since arriving in Emporia including both middle infield spots and centerfield. In 2021, he was named 2nd Team All-Miaa as a utility player. This season, Carroll has been a staple in the top of the order, batting .302 with 5 doubles, 4 home runs and 16 RBI while starting all 23 games for Emporia State.
Outfielder
Sam Chaput (Sr./Boisbriand, Quebec) has started all 23 games this season for the Hornets, primarily in right field and at the top of the lineup. Chaput is batting .330 with 5 doubles, 4 home runs, 9 RBI and 6 stolen bases. He is second on the team with 22 runs scored and has team-high 47 total bases.
Outfielder
Javier Pena (Sr./Kansas City/KS) has started in 13 games for Emporia State and has made 14 appearances overall. He has recorded a .385 on-base percentage while recording 9 RBI. He also has scored 11 runs and is tied for the team lead with 6 stolen bases.
AROUND THE HORN
First Baseman
Chandler Bloomer (Jr./Ottawa, KS) has played in 18 of 23 games for the Hornets so far this season. He is batting .172 with an on-base percentage of .304 with one HR and 10 RBI. He has also crossed the plate for 9 runs this season.
Second Basemen
Kase Johnson (So./Iowa Park, TX) transferred from Seward County Community College where he played two seasons. He has played in 14 games for the Hornets this season and is batting .200 with a trio of extra-base hits including a clutch two-run home run against MSU Denver.
Shortstop
Dylan Werries (Jr./McPherson, KS) has started 19 games and has 20 total appearances for the Hornets this season. Werries has recorded 7 doubles and 8 RBI. He has also posted a .357 on-base percentage through the first 23 games.
Third Basemen
Kadyn Williams (Fr./Emporia, KS) is in his first season with the Hornets. He has started all 23 games this far for the Hornets. He is batting .244 with an on-base percentage of .337. Williams has 3 doubles and 9 RBI on the season while recording 10 runs.
BEHIND THE PLATE
Catcher
TJ Racherbaumer (Fr./Hermann, Mo.) is batting .375 on the year in 19 games with a .413 average in 15 games as a catcher. He has three home runs and 15 RBI with a team high seven doubles.
Catcher
Lukas Rich (Jr./Olathe, Kan.) is hitting .242 in 21 games with eight of them behind the plate.
ON THE MOUND
Right-handed pitcher
Aaron Bechtel (Gr./Wichita, KS) spent the previous two seasons at Wichita State. So far this season Bechtel has started 6 games for the Hornets with a 5.08 ERA in 33.2 innings of work. He has 34 strikeouts while only allowing 7 walks this season.
Right-handed pitcher
Jared Kengott (Sr./Addison, TX) has made 7 appearances so far this season including 4 out of the bullpen. He has a 4.07 ERA in 24.1 innings. He has 20 strikeouts and is only allowing a .250 batting average against.
Left-handed pitcher
Jarrett Seaton (Sr./Omaha, NE) has appeared in 6 games for the Hornets with 5 being as a starting pitcher. Seaton is 2-2 and has recorded 24.2 innings with 34 strikeouts and allowing only 13 walks.
HISTORY
Emporia State has advanced to the NCAA Tournament 14 times in the program's history. The Hornets have captured the regular season MIAA championship on six different occasions and have won MIAA Tournament title twice. The most recent regular season championship came in 2017 when they finished the season with a 42-19 record and hosted the Central Regional.
Â
