March 31, 2023- Emporia State softball started the weekend off with a split at Northwest Missouri on a blustery Friday afternoon in Maryville, Mo. The Hornets won game one 5-2 before falling 11-1 in the second game.
GAME ONE
Emporia State used a four run sixth inning to get past Northwest Missouri 5-2 in the matinee.
The Hornets scored first thanks to an RBI ground out by
Roni Raines in the first inning that scored
Lexi Williams.
The Bearcats answered with a run of their own in the bottom of the first and then took the lead single run in the third.
Sophia Rockhold got things started for the Hornets in the sixth with a one out double. She would score to tie the game on a single by Raines.
Haley Garnett followed with a double to right center to put runners on second and third.
McKensy Glass hit a sac fly to plate Raines and give Emporia State a 3-2 lead.
Josie Harrison then delivered a pinch hit double and would later score on an
Emma Furnish single to give ESU a 5-2 lead.
Roni Raines was two for four with a double, two RBI and a run scored.
Gracie Rabe went the distance in the circle for Emporia State, scattering 11 hits with seven strikeouts while allowing just two runs.
GAME TWO
Northwest Missouri took advantage of five Emporia State errors in an 11-1 Bearcat win in the nightcap.
After the Hornets stranded two runners in the top of the first, the Bearcats put up four runs on one hit and five walks. They would go up 6-0 following two runs in the bottom of the third.
Emporia State got on the board in the top of the fourth.
McKensy Glass led off with a walk and went to second on
Alexis Dial's single. Both advanced on a ground out by
Emma Furnish and Glass would score on an RBI ground out from
Lexi Williams.
The Bearcats then put the game away with five runs on five hits with three errors in the bottom of the fourth.
Haley Garnett was two for two for the Hornets in game two.
Emporia State is back in action on Saturday afternoon at Missouri Western. First pitch from the Griffon Spring Sports Complex in St. Joseph, Mo. is set for 12:00 p.m.