Emporia State Baseball Set to Take On Minot State

Baseball | 2/9/2023 2:46:00 PM

Emporia State Hornets (2-1, 0-0 MIAA)
vs. Minot State Beavers (0-0, 0-0 NSIC)
Friday, Feb. 10 • 2:00 p.m. • Rock Creek HS • St. George, Kan.
Saturday, Feb. 11 • 12:00 p.m. (DH) • Rock Creek HS • St. George, Kan.
Sunday, Feb. 12 • 12:00 p.m. • Rock Creek HS • St. George, Kan.
Series Record: ESU leads 5-0 Last Meeting: ESU 4, MSU 1 (1978)
Video: The MIAA Network Live Stats: esuhornets.com
Up Next: Augustana • Feb. 17-19, 2023
Rock Creek HS • St. George, Kan.

HOME AWAY FROM HOME
Emporia State will meet Minot State as the Hornets and Beavers are scheduled to play a four-game series at Rock Creek HS due to infield turf at Glennen Field being replaced.

LAST AT BAT
Emporia State traveled to Edmond, Okla. for the Edmond First Pitch Classic where the Hornets finished 2-1. The Hornets opened the season with Oklahoma Baptist as the Hornets rallied from an early 5-0 deficit to defeat the Bison 17-9. After falling to Northern State, the Hornets rallied to defeat Southwestern Oklahoma 7-4 on the final day.

THE COACHES
Seth Wheeler is in his fifth season as the Hornets head coach. He is 81-86 through four-plus seasons at the helm.
Sam Boisner is entering his first season as head coach of the Beavers. 

ABOUT THE HORNETS
The Hornets are 2-1 on the season and have totaled 30 runs through three games. The offense was led by a trio of qualified hitters through opening weekend as Jake Bucovetsky hit .375 in eight at-bats while Andrew Rantz and TJ Racherbaumer both hit .357 in 14 at-bats. Gibrian Pena recorded three home runs for a team-high 10 RBI. On the mound,  Noah Geekie pitched 6.0 scoreless innings against Southwestern Oklahoma while Ian Lanik pitched 4.2 scoreless innings in relief against Oklahoma Baptist in the season opener. Greg Ross also made an impact in relief with a pair of saves over the weekend.

SCOUTING THE BEAVERS
Minot State will open the season against the Hornets this weekend after finishing the 2022 season 28-23 and 20-12 in the NSIC as the Beavers finished fourth in the regular season. The Beavers were picked to resemble last season as they were ranked fourth in the NSIC Coaches Preseason Poll. Players to watch for the Beavers are pitchers Dominick Parkhurst and Matt Malone. Parkhurst, a senior pitcher from Tucson, Ariz., was 5-1 with a 2.67 ERA with 46 strikeouts during the 2022 season. Malone, a senior catcher from Plainview, N.Y., hit .294 with two home runs and 30 RBI for the Beavers last season. As a team, Minot State ranked in the top three in the NSIC in a number of categories including home runs, RBI, doubles and total bases. 

SERIES HISTORY
Emporia State and Minot State will be meeting  for the first time in 45 years as the Hornets and Beavers last met in 1978. The Hornets won all five games of the five-game slate against the Beavers. 

UP NEXT
Emporia State will take on Augustana (SD) in a four-game series from Feb. 17-19. The Hornets and Vikings will meet at Rock Creek HS while the infield turf at Glennen Field is being replaced. 

WHEELS ON THE BUS
Seth Wheeler is in his fifth season at the helm of the Hornet Baseball program. Wheeler has a career record of 81-86. 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 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 all three 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/ Noah Geekie (Sr./Strathclair, Manitoba) is batting .286 this season with two hits in seven at-bats with an RBI and four runs scored. In addition to his play in the field and at the plate, Geekie has also found a role on the mound as he pitched six scoreless innings in the Hornets 7-4 win over Southwestern Oklahoma on day three of the Edmond First Pitch Classic.
Oufielder Gibrian Pena (So./Odessa, Texas) is batting .231 this season with three hits in 10 at-bats. All three hits from Pena have been home runs as he leads the Hornets with 10 RBI through the first three games. In addition to a pair of starts in left field, Pena has also started one game at first base for the Hornets.
Outfielder Quinton Carlberg (So./Lee's Summit, Mo.) has started all three games for Emporia State in right field this season. Carlberg has a pair of hits on the season with a double, RBI and a run scored. 

AROUND THE HORN 
First Baseman Chandler Bloomer (Sr./Ottawa, KS) has played in two games this season with both starts coming at first base. He has tallied six at-bats with a pair of walks and a run scored. Last season, Bloomer played in 48 games for the Hornets and tallied 24 RBI with an on-base percentage of .365.
Second Basemen Mason Sturdy (So./Wamego, KS) has started one game for the Hornets at second base and is hitting .400 with a pair of hits in five at-bats. Last season, Sturdy played in 22 games as he recorded 16 hits and tallied 11 RBI.
Second Basemen Kadyn Williams (So./Emporia, KS) has made a pair of starts this season one at both second base and center field. He is 1-5 from the plate but has drawn a pair of walks and also one HBP for an on-base percentage of .444. Williams has an RBI and a run scored in two games played this season.
Shortstop Andrew Rantz (Fr./Topeka, Kan.) has started all three games for the Hornets at shortstop and is tied for second on the Hornets with a .357 average as he is 5-14 on the season. He has a home run, two doubles, three RBI and a six runs scored for the Hornets. 
Third Baseman Palmer Hutchison (So./Hays, Kan.) has started all three games at third base for the Hornets this season and is hitting .273 with an on-base percentage of .500 on the season. Hutchison has tallied three hits, one home run, two RBI and four runs scored while also drawing four walks. 
Designated Hitter Jake Bucovetsky (So./Toronto, Ontario) has started all three games for Emporia State in the designated hitter role and currently leads the Hornets with a .375 batting average with three hits in eight at-bats. He has also drawn four walks and a pair of HBP's as he holds a .643 on-base percentage. 

BEHIND THE PLATE
Catcher TJ Racherbaumer (So./Hermann, MO) has started all three games for Emporia State behind the plate this season and is tied for second on team with a .357 batting average. TJ has one home run, one double, five RBI and a pair of runs scored. Last season, during his freshman campaign, Racherbaumer posted a .362 batting average along with a .456 on-base and .675 slugging percentage. He tallied 10 home runs, 41 RBI and 17 doubles as he earned MIAA Freshman of the Year honors. 

ON THE MOUND
Left-handed pitcher Graham Brunner (Jr./Sherwood Park, Alberta) transferred to Emporia State from Illinois State and has started one game for the Hornets. Brunner pitched 1.1 innings in the season opener against Oklahoma Baptist and allowed just three hits and recorded one strikeout.
Right-handed pitcher Cade Barton (So./Omaha, Neb.) has started one game for the Hornets this season, which came in game two of the Edmond First Pitch Classic against Northern State. Barton went 5.2 innings against the Wolves, allowing seven hits, three runs, two earned runs and recorded four strikeouts with just one walk.  
Right-handed pitcher Noah Geekie (Sr./Strathclair, Manitoba) started on day three of the Edmond First Pitch Classic as he took the mound against Southwestern Oklahoma. Geekie kept the Bulldogs at bay as he pitched six shutout innings, allowing just two hits and striking out six without allowing a walk. 
Right-handed pitcher Grant Huffman (Fr./Lee's Summit, Mo.) has appeared  in one game for the Hornets, as he pitched one inning against Southwestern Oklahoma on day three of the Edmond First Pitch Classic. Huffman did not allow a hit while recording two strikeouts against the Bulldogs.  
Right-handed pitcher Braden Meek (Jr./Enid, OK) has appeared in two games for the Hornets out of the bullpen and has totaled one full inning across his two appearances. Meek has allowed two earned while striking out a pair of hitters. Last season, Meek appeared in 19 games, totaling 28.1 innings pitched as he recorded 23 strikeouts and allowed just seven walks.
Right-handed pitcher Ian Lanik (So./Eagle, Neb.) has made one appearance out of the bullpen for the Hornets this season, which came in the season opener against Oklahoma Baptist. Against the Bison, Lanik recorded 4.2 scoreless innings as he allowed just one hit and struck out a pair of Bison batters.
Right-handed pitcher Greg Ross (So./Sarnia, Ontario) has made two appeareances out of the bullpen for the Hornets this season, with both resulting in a save. In Ross' two combined appearances, he has totaled 3.1 innings pitched allowing just four hits and one earned run while also striking out seven batters. 

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.