MIAA Play Resumes for Emporia State Softball at Trusler

Softball | 3/14/2024 9:35:00 PM

Emporia State Hornets (17-10, 1-3 MIAA)
vs. Northeastern State RiverHawks (5-14, 0-2 MIAA)
Friday, March 15 • 2:00 p.m. (DH) • Emporia, Kan. • Turnbull Field
Series Record: ESU leads 34-26 • Last Meeting: at NSU 7, ESU 2 (4/22/23)
vs. #3 Rogers State Hillcats (18-4, 2-0 MIAA)
Saturday, March 16 • 12:00 p.m. (DH) • Emporia, Kan. • Turnbull Field
Series Record: RSU leads 7-3 • Last Meeting: at RSU 5, ESU 2 (4/21/23)
Live Stats: esuhornets.com • Video: The MIAA Network
Complete Notes in pdf
Up Next: vs. Lincoln • March 22 • Jefferson City, Mo.

BACK TO MIAA PLAY
Emporia State plays host to Northeastern State and Rogers State to wrap up Spring Break at Trusler.

LAST AT BAT
Emporia State softball split a non-conference double header with Drury on Wednesday afternoon at the Trusler Sports Complex.  The Hornet dropped game one 3-1 before taking a 6-3 win in the second game. Bailey Flewelling was four for six with a double, three RBI and a run scored in the double header. Jayda Van Ackeren went the distance in the circle in the nightcap, allowing three unearned runs on five hits with three strikeouts.

THE COACHES
April Rosales is 225-212 in her ninth season at Emporia State. She has taken the Hornets to two MIAA Tournament Championship Games with a win in the 2018 MIAA Tournament. Coach Rosales will not be coaching while on maternity leave. 
Assistant Coach Megan Hill will coach in her absence and is 16-5 as acting head coach this season.
Rachel Rhode is 5-14 in her first season at Northeastern State. This is her first meeting with Emporia State.
Andrea Vaughan is 293-153-1 in her ninth year at Rogers State. She is 7-3 against Emporia State.

ABOUT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 17-10, 1-3 in the MIAA. They are ranked 11th in the nation in stolen bases with three players ranked in the top 50 nationally. Alexis Dial is batting .475 while Bailey Flewelling is at .440 to rank third and fourth in the MIAA and they are tied for the MIAA lead with nine doubles on the year. Dial is leading the MIAA and ranked 17th in the country with 32 RBI. Haley Garnett is leading the MIAA and ranked 15th in the nation in walks.  Kelly Hipsher is leading the MIAA and ranked seventh in the nation with two saves. Jayda VanAckeren, Jordan Harrison, Gracie Rabe and Josie Harrison all have at least six starts on the year.

ABOUT THE RIVERHAWKS
Northeastern State is 5-14, 0-2 in the MIAA. They rank 14th in the MIAA in batting average and fielding percentage.
LAST TIME VS. NORTHEASTERN ST.
The Hornets split a double header in Tahlequah last season, winning 7-1 befored dropping a 7-2 decision.

ABOUT THE HILLCATS
Rogers State is 18-4, 2-0 in the MIAA and ranked #3 in the nation. They lead the MIAA in ERA and fielding percentage.
LAST TIME VS. ROGERS STATE
The Hornets were swept by the Hillcats last season in Claremore, 5-3 in eight innings and 5-2.

ON DECK
Emporia State travels to Jefferson City for a double header against Lincoln on March 22.

IN THE DUGOUT
April Rosales is in her ninth season leading the Emporia State softball program and has a 225-212 record. Since taking over the program in 2016, Rosales has led the Hornets to an MIAA Tournament Championship, two MIAA Tournament title game appearances, and an appearance in the NCAA Central Sub-Regional Championship.
Rosales was also a member of Emporia State softball during her playing days which included an run to the NCAA Division II National Championship in 2008 which resulted in a National Runner-Up finish. During the 2008 season, she hit .324 with 30 RBI while playing nearly every game at shortstop for the Hornets. She was named First Team All-MIAA that season. 
Assistant Coach Megan Hill is serving as the acting head coach while Coach Rosales is away on maternity leave. She has gone 16-5 this season.

BEHIND THE PLATE
Catcher Bailey Flewelling (Sr./Holton, KS) is in her fourth season at Emporia State and has played in 113 career games. This season Flewelling is batting .440 with a 1.241 OPS and has five home runs, 22 RBI, nine doubles and 14 runs scored. She is tied for the MIAA lead in doubles, ranks fifth in batting average and home runs, seventh in hits, eighth in slugging percentage, ninth in OPS and tenth in RBI. 
Ally Miller (Fr./Olathe, KS) has appeared in eight games with seven behind the dish. She is batting batting .143 with a walk and two runs scored.

IN THE FIELD
Outfielder Alexis Dial (Sr./Topeka, KS) is in her fourth season at Emporia State and has played  in 170 career games for the Hornets. This season, Dial is batting .475 with 38 hits, nine doubles, two triples, four home runs, 32 RBI, 20 runs scored, and 13 stolen bases. She is leading the MIAA and ranked 17th in the nation in RBI and also leads the league and ranks 25th in doubles. She came off the bench the last two games after suffering a leg injury last weekend.
Outfielder Lexi Williams (Sr../Hutchinson, KS) is in her third season at Emporia State and is batting .405 in 26 games with five doubles, three triples, 12 RBI and 25 runs scored. She is eighth in the MIAA in stolen bases and runs scored and fourth in triples. In her career, Williams has 76 stolen bases across 129 games played. 
Outfielder Emma Furnish (Sr./Goddard, KS) is in her fourth season with the Hornets and is batting .309 with 13 RBI, five doubles, a triple and a home run. In the Alvy Early Classic, Furnish hit her fifth career home run, a three-run home run to clinch a 10-9 comeback win over Harding. 
Outfielder Juliana De Luna (Fr./San Antonio, TX) is in her first season at Emporia State and has played in 20 games with seven starts. She has five RBI, six runs scored, two walks and four stolen bases.

AROUND THE HORN
Shortstop Abbey Ward (Gr./Olathe, KS) is in her fifth season with the Hornets and is batting .329 this season with seven doubles, a triple, three home runs, 27 runs scored and 16 stolen bases. Ward is third in Emporia State history with 118 career stolen bases and needs one to tie Jessica Wiard (119 from 2005-08) for second and five to tie Morgan Viola's (124 from 2004-07) ESU career record. Her 118 career steals in second among active players in Division II.
Infielder/Designated Player Haley Garnett (Sr./Olathe, KS) is in her second season with the Hornets and is batting .300 with four home runs, 17 RBI, 19 runs scored and three stolen bases. 
Second baseman McKensy Glass (Sr./Wichita, KS) is in her fourth season with the Hornets and has played in 133 career games. Glass has a .267 average with five RBI, six runs scored and a .348 on base percentage this season. 
Infielder Brooke Flewelling (Fr./Holton, KS) is in her first season with the Hornets and has started 15 games for the Hornets. She has a double, a triple, a home run, five runs scored and five RBI in her freshman campaign.
Infielder Karli Wehunt (Fr./Shidler, OK) is in her first season with the Hornets and has four RBI, five runs scored, seven walks and a .353 on base percentage. 
Infielder/designated player Avery Brewer (Fr./Jenks, OK) is in her first season at Emporia State is batting .318 with three doubles, 11 RBI and five runs scored in her 16 games played.

IN THE CIRCLE
Pitcher Gracie Rabe (Jr./Rossville, KS) is in her third season with the Hornets and has a team-best 2.57 ERA in 51.2 innings over 11 appearances. She is 3-3 on the season and has struck out 31 batters and allowed just eight walks this season. 
Pitcher Jayda VanAckeren (Jr./Omaha, NE) is in her third season with the Hornets and has made ten appearances this season. She is 6-2 with a 4.13 ERA across 40.2 innings pitched. She earned MIAA Pitcher of the Week honors following her outing against Wayne State, a complete game shutout where she allowed just three hits. 
Pitcher Kelly Hipsher (Sr./Olathe, Kan.) is in her second season with the Hornets and has made strong impact in relief through the first 27 games. Hipsher has 13  appearances and has a 2.82 ERA across 22.1 innings with 13 strikeouts. She earned two saves at the Alvy Early Classic and pitched 12 innings across all four games in Bentonville, Ark. She leads the MIAA and is ranked 12th in the nation in saves.
Pitcher Josie Harrison (Gr./St. Mary's, KS) is in her fifth season for the Hornets and has has made seven appearances this season and has pitched 20.0 innings. Harrison also has a .311 batting average with 12 RBI and 12 runs scored at the plate this season.
Pitcher Jordan Harrison (Jr./St. Mary's, KS) is in her first season with the Hornets after transferring from Johnson County CC. She is 4-2 with a 5.35 ERA in nine appearances. She has tossed 34.0 innings and has 30 strikeouts with just ten walks allowed.

ON A ROLL
Earlier this season Emporia State had a 15-game winning streak, matching their longest winning streak since the 2012 season where Emporia State won 42 games, including the MIAA Tournament Championship.

HOME SWEET HOME
After winning their final twelve home games of the 2023 season, Emporia State won all five games at the ESU Classic to extend their home winning streak to 17 games. 

OFF AND RUNNING
Through the first 27 games of the season, Emporia State is among the top teams in Division II in stolen bases. After leading the MIAA in steals in seven of the last eight years as well as ranking top ten in the nation in both total steals and steals per game last season, the Hornets are currently 11th in total steals and 29th in steals per game in the nation.
Abbey Ward has been an important part to the success of the Hornets on the bases in her career. Ward led the MIAA last season in stolen bases and ranked second in each of her first two full seasons. She entered the 2024 season with 102 stolen bases, which ranked fifth in program history and has tallied 16 in the first 27 games this season. Ward is currently third in program history with 118 career stolen bases. The program record is held by Morgan Viola (2004-07) with 124 stolen bases.