February 23, 2025 – Emporia State softball split day one of the Washburn Invitational, taking down Concordia-St. Paul 2-1 in game one before falling 11-3 against Minnesota State in the afternoon.
Game 1 (ESU 2, CSP 1)
Emporia State got the game started with the first run in the top of the first.
Taryn Burkhardt drew a leadoff walk, and after advancing to third with two outs, came in to score on a wild pitch to put the Hornets ahead 1-0.
Jordan Harrison got the start against the Golden Bears and retired the first six batters she faced. Concordia-St. Paul finally broke through against Harrison in the third as a leadoff single came around to score and tie the game 1-1.
Both teams went scoreless in the fourth and fifth frames, before Emporia State broke through with the eventual winning run in the top of the sixth. With one out,
Juliana De Luna doubled, and eventually scored on an RBI single by
Mallory Moore to put Emporia State in front 2-1.
Harrison stranded a runner in each of the last two innings but maintained the Emporia State lead to secure the 2-1 win over Concordia-St. Paul.
Five different Hornets recorded a hit, with
Mallory Moore going 2-3 with an RBI.
Taryn Burkhardt and
Juliana De Luna each scored a run in the win.
Jordan Harrison pitched a complete game, her third in four starts this season, and allowed just one run on four hits while tallying five strikeouts.
Game 2 (MSU 11, ESU 3)
Minnesota State got the jump on Emporia State in game two, scoring the opening run in the bottom of the first with a two-out RBI single by Mellum. The Hornets answered back in the bottom half of the inning with two of their own, getting an RBI double by
Avery Brewer and a fielder's choice by
Ally Miller to take a 2-1 lead.
The Mavericks retook the lead in the bottom of the second, using a pair of two-run home runs to build a 5-2 advantage over the Hornets. In the third, Minnesota State added four more to their total, as they held a 9-2 leading heading to the fourth frame.
Both teams picked up a hit in fourth but were held scoreless before Emporia State pushed across their third run in the top of the fifth.
Juliana De Luna delivered a sac fly to score
Kinsey Perine and make the score 9-3.
The Mavericks added two runs in the bottom of the fifth, sealing the game 11-3.
The Hornets tallied six hits for the second straight game, with
Kinsey Perine going 2-2 at the plate.
Brooke Flewelling,
Avery Brewer and
Ally Miller each drove in a run for Emporia State.
Emporia State will be back in action on Monday, February 24 for day two of the Washburn Invitational as they take on Northern State with first pitch scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
