WEEKEND SERIES WITH MISSOURI SOUTHERN UP NEXT FOR EMPORIA STATE BASEBALL

Baseball | 3/24/2022 12:37:00 PM

Emporia State Hornets (10-16, 4-9 MIAA)
vs. Missouri Southern Lions (16-11, 7-6 MIAA)
Friday, Mar. 25 • 5:00 p.m. • Glennen Field • Emporia, Kan.
Saturday, Mar. 26 • 2:00 p.m. • Glennen Field • Emporia, Kan.
Sunday, Mar. 27 • 1:00 p.m. • Glennen Field • Emporia, Kan.
Series Record: ESU leads 70-38 Last Meeting: MSSU 7, ESU 0 (2/28/21)
Video: The MIAA Network Live Stats: esuhornets.com
Radio: KFFX 104.9FM (Sunday only) Internet Audio: kvoe.com (Sunday only)
Complete Notes in pdf
Up Next: Pittsburg State • Mar. 29, 2022 • 6:00 p.m. • Al Ortolani Field • Pittsburg, Kan.

OUT OF THE LIONS DEN
Emporia State will complete a two-week home stand with a three game series against Missouri Southern at Trusler.

LAST AT BAT
The Hornets won two of three from Northwest Missouri last weekend. Jarrett Seaton tossed 7.0 innings and the bullpen finished off the shutout in a 3-0 Emporia State win in game one.  The Bearcats won 7-5 in the second game and the Hornets hit five homers in a 7-3 rubber match win.

THE COACHES
Seth Wheeler is in his fourth season as the Hornets head coach and enters with a 68-70 record through three-plus seasons at the helm. He is 5-5 against Missouri Southern.
Bryce Darnell is 421-305 in his 15th season at Missouri Southern. He is 21-32 against Emporia State.

ABOUT THE HORNETS
The Hornets are 10-16, 4-9 in the MIAA. TJ Racherbaumer has a team best .388 batting average with Noah Geekie close behind with a .386 average. They are joined above .300 by Sam Chaput who posts an average of .359 on the season. Racherbaumer leads the team with five home runs and 20 RBI this season. Chaput has a team-high 37 hits and eight stolen bases. 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 LIONS
Missouri Southern is 16-11, 7-6 on the season. The Lions offense is highlighted by six batters who post a batting average above .300. They are led by Tommy Stevenson who has an average of .422 this season and leads the Lions in most categories. He has a team-high 1.426 while leading with 12 home runs and 33 RBI. On the mound, the Lions starters are led by Jacob Davis and Logan VanWey who both have over 31.0 innings on the season and post ERA's of 5.74 and 5.40 respectively. Out of the bullpen, they are led in appearances by Ryan Paschal and Cale McCallister. They have combined for 32.0 appearances and 38 strikeouts in 39 combined innings.

SERIES HISTORY
Emporia State leads the all-time series 70-38.The home team has won the last eight games in the series.

LAST TIME AGAINST MSSU
Emporia State traveled to Joplin, Missouri for a three-game series to open MIAA action. The Hornets struggled at the the plate during the series, including two games in which they were unable to cross the plate. Emporia State fell in all three games of the series 3-0, 4-3, and 7-0.

UP NEXT
Emporia State will travel to Pittsburg for a midweek match-up against Pittsburg State on March 29 before traveling to Oklahoma for a three-game series against Rogers State on April 1-3.

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 68-70. 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 Brenden Tauber (Jr./Omaha, NE) has played in 15 games for the Hornets while making 12 starts. He has an on-base percentage of .289 and has 1 home run, 4 RBI and has scored 9 runs for the Hornets.
Outfielder Sam Chaput (Sr./Boisbriand, Quebec) has started and reached base in all 26 games this season. Chaput is batting .359 with 6 doubles, 4 home runs, 10 RBI and 8 stolen bases. He also has a team-high 24 runs scored and 55 total bases.
Outfielder Noah Geekie (Jr./Strathclair, Manitoba) is batting .386 in 16 games with 14 starts in the field. He is also a pitcher for the Hornets and has a 3-2 record with 38 strikeouts in 31.2 innings.  
Outfielder Quinn Cherry (Sr./Pawley's Island, SC) has started nine games for Emporia State and has made 14 appearances overall. He leads the Hornets in pinch hit at bats with four including a two run homer in his last at bat.

AROUND THE HORN
First Baseman Chandler Bloomer (Jr./Ottawa, KS) has played in 23 of 26 games for the Hornets. He is batting .174 with an on-base percentage of .288 with one home run and 10 RBI. He has also crossed the plate for nine runs this season.
Second Basemen Blake Carroll (Sr./Wichita, KS) has been a staple in the top of the order, batting .265 with a .436 on base percentage, five doubles, four home runs and 16 RBI while starting all 23 games. Carroll 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.
Shortstop Kase Johnson (So./Iowa Park, TX) has played in 17 games for the Hornets this season and is batting .196 with five extra-base hits including two home runs with six RBI.
Third Basemen Kadyn Williams (Fr./Emporia, KS) has started all 26 games this far for the Hornets. He is batting .228 with a .314 on-base percentage. Williams has three doubles, one home run and 10 RBI on the season while recording 11 runs.

BEHIND THE PLATE
Catcher TJ Racherbaumer (Fr./Hermann, Mo.) is batting .388 on the year in 22 games with an on-base percentage of .494 to lead the Hornets. He has five home runs and 20 RBI with a team high eight doubles.
Catcher/DH Lukas Rich (Jr./Olathe, Kan.) is hitting .247 in 23 games with eight of them behind the plate.

ON THE MOUND
Left-handed pitcher Jarrett Seaton (Sr./Omaha, NE) has appeared in seven games for the Hornets with six starts. He is 3-2 with a 4.83 ERA in 31.2 innings with 38 strikeouts and just 16 walks.
Right-handed pitcher Aaron Bechtel (Gr./Wichita, KS) has started seven games for the Hornets with a 5.79 ERA in 37.1 innings of work. He has 37 strikeouts while only allowing eight walks this season.
Right-handed pitcher Jared Kengott (Sr./Addison, TX) has made eight appearances so far this season including three out of the bullpen. He has a 3.86 ERA in 30.1 innings. He has 25 strikeouts and is only allowing a .243 batting average against.
Right-handed pitcher Carl Aikman (So./Topeka, KS) has a team high four saves in 11 appearances out of the bullpen.

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 occasions and have won MIAA Tournament title twice.