April 19, 2024 – Emporia State made a late push on Friday night, looking for a comeback against Fort Hays State, but fell short as the Hornets lost 5-4 in game one of the series.
In the first inning, Emporia State was retired in order and Hornet starter
Seth Stover immediately faced trouble in the bottom half. The Tigers tallied three singles but were unable to score as Stover forced a fly out to keep the game deadlocked at 0-0. Following a scoreless second frame, the Hornets struck first in the third inning.
Dom Oliverio delivered an RBI single with two outs to give Emporia State the 1-0 lead. Fort Hays State responded in the bottom half of the third with five runs, including a three-run home run by Jose Cintron as the Tigers led the Hornets 5-1 heading to the middle innings.
After consecutive scoreless innings in the fourth and fifth, Emporia State cut into the Fort Hays State lead with two runs in the sixth. With two outs and the bases loaded,
Logan Myers singled through the left side to trim the deficit in half. In the bottom half, Fort Hays State threatened to score against the Hornet bullpen as they eventually loaded the bases against
Eli Hernandez before a groundout to
Kadyn Williams at third ended the inning as Hernandez kept the score at 5-3.
Emporia State put two runners on in the seventh and another runner on base in the eight but were unable to inch any closer as they still trailed by two runs. After
Eli Hernandez struck out the side in the eighth,
Kadyn Williams led off the top of the ninth with his tenth home run of the season as the Hornets cut the Fort Hays State lead to 5-4. The Hornets were able to draw two more walks in the final frame but could not bring the score level, as Emporia State dropped game one of the series against the Tigers 5-4.
At the plate,
Logan Myers went 3-4 with two RBI and
Kadyn Williams went 2-4 with an RBI of his own.
Jovanni Toledo went 1-2 with a run scored and three walks. On the mound,
Eli Hernandez had four strikeouts in 2.1 relief innings and
Coby Rogers had three strikeouts in 1.2 innings pitched.
Game two of the series between the Hornets and Tigers will be on Saturday, April 20. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.
