February 4, 2023 – Emporia State fell to Northern State 9-6 in a back-and-forth battle on Saturday afternoon at the Edmond First Pitch Classic.
In the first inning, Emporia State was able to earn the first base runner of the game as
Palmer Hutchison drew a two-out walk in the top of the first but both the Hornets and Wolves went scoreless in the first frame.
Jake Bucovetsky opened the scoring in the top of the second inning with a solo home run to give Emporia State a 1-0 lead. Northern State responded to the Bucovetsky home run with a two-out RBI double to tie the game 1-1 through two innings.
Both teams went scoreless over the next two innings until the Hornets scored a pair of runs in the top of the fifth inning. With two outs,
Andrew Rantz singled to bring
Gibrian Pena to the plate. Pena laced his third home run of the season to left field to give Emporia State a 3-1 lead over the Wolves.
Northern State was able to counter the Pena home run in the bottom of the sixth as the Wolves homered to tie the game 3-3.
The back-and-forth battle continued into the top of the seventh inning as
Kadyn Williams drove in
Noah Geekie with a sac fly to center as Emporia State regained the lead, 4-3 over the Wolves.
The Wolves once again regained the lead over the Hornets, this time with a two-out two RBI triple in the bottom of the seventh that gave Northern State a 5-4 lead over Emporia State.
Emporia State retook their final lead of the game as they advanced a pair of runners into scoring position in the top of the eighth inning with two outs. The Hornets scored both runners following a pair of wild pitches by the Wolves as Emporia State took a 6-5 lead heading into the bottom of the eighth inning.
Following a scoreless eighth for the Wolves and scoreless top of the ninth for the Hornets, Northern State applied the pressure to Emporia State in the bottom of the ninth. The first three hitters reached base as the Wolves loaded the bases with no outs. Following a sacrifice fly to tie the game 6-6, the Hornets forced the next batter to pop out to
Chandler Bloomer at first base for the second out.
The Hornets were unable to escape the inning as Northern State hit a three-run home run to clinch the win as Emporia State fell to Northern State 9-6 on day two of the Edmond First Pitch Classic.
TJ Racherbaumer went 2-5 from the plate while
Gibrian Pena,
Andrew Rantz and
Jake Bucovetsky each recorded a hit. Pena's lone hit was a two-run home run, his third of the season.
On the mound,
Cade Barton started the game and went 5.2 innings allowing three runs and two earned runs on seven hits. Barton also struck out four batters while allowing just one walk.
Emporia State will return to action on the final day of the Edmond First Pitch Classic on Sunday, February 5 against Southwestern Oklahoma State. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. from Wendell Simmons Field.
