April 1, 2022 – Emporia State fell 9-7 against Rogers State on Friday afternoon in Claremore, Oklahoma.
The offense started early for both the Hornets and the Hillcats.
Sam Chaput started the game with a double into the right center gap before
Blake Carroll took the first pitch he saw back up the middle to score Chaput and put Emporia State on top. After a
Noah Geekie single resulted in two runners in scoring position for the Hornets,
Chandler Bloomer came through with an RBI groundout to the right side to score Carroll and double the Emporia State lead.
Rogers State answered back with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first to tie the score 2-2.
After being held scoreless for two frames, the scoring resumed in the middle innings. Emporia State reclaimed the lead in the fourth inning when
Mason Sturdy, who made his first start and appearance for the Hornets, recorded an RBI groundout to score
Kadyn Williams. Williams came back to the plate in the fifth inning with two runners on and two outs and doubled into right field to give Emporia State a 5-2 advantage.
The Hillcats got two more runs back in the sixth inning to trim the Hornet lead to 5-4. After Emporia State went scoreless in the seventh inning, Rogers State recorded a big inning as they pushed across five runs to flip the script and take a 9-5 lead over the Hornets.
Emporia State answered in the eighth inning as they made a push to come back against the Hillcats when the Hornets loaded the bases for
Chandler Bloomer. Bloomer would come through a second time in the game as he singled up the middle to score two runs and cut the deficit in half, with Emporia State trailing 9-7.
In the ninth, the Hornets made another push as
Javier Pena drew a leadoff walk. After a pair of strikeouts, the lineup would turn to the top where
Sam Chaput would rip his second double of the game to put two Hornets in scoring position and bring the go-ahead run to the plate. However, this is as close as the Hornet comeback would go.
Jarrett Seaton got the start for the Hornets as he went 5.0 innings allowing six hits and four runs.
At the plate,
Blake Carroll went 3-6 with an RBI and two runs scored.
Sam Chaput went 2-5 with two doubles and a walk.
Chandler Bloomer recorded three RBI for the Hornets.
Emporia State will take on Rogers State in game two of the three-game series on Saturday afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.
