Baseball | 3/13/2025 11:54:00 AM
Games 18-20
Emporia State Hornets (8-9, 1-5 MIAA)
vs. Rogers State Hillcats (15-3, 5-1 MIAA)
Friday, March 14 • 3:00 p.m. • Emporia, Kan. • Turnbull Baseball Field
Saturday, March 15 • 2:00 p.m. • Emporia, Kan. • Turnbull Baseball Field
Sunday, March 16 • 1:00 p.m. • Emporia, Kan. • Turnbull Baseball Field
Series History: RSU leads 7-5 •
Last Meeting: ESU 1, RSU 0 (3/15/24)
SPRING BREAK AT TRUSLER
Emporia State begins a seven-game MIAA home stand this weekend with a three-game series against Rogers State at Trusler Sports Complex.
LAST TIME OUT
The Hornets traveled to St. Louis for four games, with two against Hillsdale and two more against host Maryville. After falling on a walk-off in the first game against Hillsdale, Emporia State responded with three straight wins, including a pair of 18-run outbursts in their two wins against Maryville. The Hornets completed the split on Friday with an 18-11 win over the Saints, which included 21 hits, the most in a game for Emporia State since February 17, 2018.
A LOOK AT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 8-9 on the season and 1-5 in the MIAA after beginning conference play against Pittsburg State and Central Oklahoma who are both receiving votes in one or both week four national polls. The Hornets are hitting .268 as a team through the first 17 games, as they bounced back the last four games with 47 runs last weekend in St. Louis. Dominic Felix and Noah Steele are hitting .408 and .400 respectively and both have at least 20 hits this season. TJ Racherbaumer and Logan Myers are matched for the team-high with four home runs and Racherbaumer has drawn 11 walks to lead the Hornets with a .472 OBP. On the mound, ten players have four or more appearances and Seth Stover has a team-high 26.0 innings pitched with 19 strikeouts and only three walks allowed. Ian Lanik has made a team-leading seven relief appearances and has 15 strikeouts in 10.0 innings while tallying three saves.
SCOUTING THE HILLCATS
Rogers State is off to a 15-3 start to the season, the best 18-game open to a season in 11 seasons under head coach Chris Klimas. The Hillcats are hitting .316 in 2025, which is the second-best average in the MIAA, behind just #4 Central Missouri while ranking top five in stolen bases, OBP, RBI and walks. The offense for Rogers State has been paced by Andrew Ramirez and Weston Peninger who are batting .424 and .370 respectively and each have four home runs on the season. Ramirez leads the way with 24 RBI and a .524 OBP. On the mound, the Hillcats have an MIAA-best 4.08 ERA and .221 opponent batting average and are led by Ky Decker, Christopher Spry and Colton Anderson who have all started four or more games and won three or more games. Anderson has a team-high 32 strikeouts in 28.1 innings. In the bullpen, Landon Riley has a team-high seven appearances and has a 0.66 ERA in 13.2 innings.
TOP OF THE HILL
Brad Hill is in his second season at the helm of the Hornet Baseball program and has a 30-37 record. Hill has a career record of 916-519-3 in 28 seasons leading UCM, Kansas State and Emporia State. In his career, Hill has taken 13 teams to the NCAA Tournament, nine trips with the Mules and four with the Wildcats. At Central Missouri, Hill made nine NCAA Tournament trips in nine seasons with seven Division II World Series appearances, including the 2003 National Championship.
He moved from Warrensburg to Manhattan following the 2003 national championship and would lead K-State to four NCAA Regional Tournaments and the Wildcats first ever Super Regional berth in 2013. He was named the ABCA Midwest Region Coach of the Year in 2009 as the Bat Cats advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history.
A proven producer of talent, Hill has coached 64 players that were selected in the MLB Draft with 46 at Kansas State and 18 in nine years at Division II Central Missouri.
Hill was a three-time All-American in 1982-84 for the Hornets and is the career record holder in games played (244), home runs (47), and RBI (264), while also ranking second in career doubles, at-bats and base hits in Hornet baseball history.
900 AND COUNTING
Brad Hill currently has 916 wins in his 28th season as a head coach at the Division I and II levels. Hill is the winningest coach at both Central Missouri and Kansas State with 418 and 468 wins at each program. His 448 wins across his years at Central Missouri and in two years at Emporia state ranks eighth in MIAA history.
BEHIND THE PLATE
TJ Racherbaumer (Sr./Herrmann, Mo.) is in his fourth season with the Hornets and has played in 162 career games. Racherbaumer has played in all 17 games this season, making 16 starts and 14 behind the plate. He is batting .321 on the season, with four home runs, four doubles and a team-high 11 walks and 14 runs scored. Racherbaumer has drawn 103 career walks, which ranks fourth in Emporia State history. He also ranks sixth in career at-bats and tenth in hits while nearing the top ten in home runs, doubles, and games played.
Dylan Brisbois (R-So./Omaha, Neb.) has started four games, and played in six games this season. Brisbois is batting .267 and has reached base in six of 17 plate appearances.
Austin Lynn (R-Fr./North Las Vegas, NV) has made four and played in six games after redshirting in 2024. Lynn has reached base four times, a walk and a run scored.
AROUND THE HORN
First Basemen/Designated Hitter Jovanni Toledo (So./Tucson, Ariz.) has started 11 games for the Hornets, with 13 games played. Toledo has driven in eleven runs and has three doubles, one home run and four runs scored.
Second Basemen Logan Myers (So./Pittsburg, Kan.) is coming off a 2024 season where he was named MIAA Co-Freshman of the Year after hitting .301 with a .431 OBP last season. Myers has started 14 games this season, with 13 at second base and one at shortstop. He is batting .259 on the season, and 12-37 over the last nine games. Myers has four home runs, 12 RBI and 12 runs scored.
Infielder Peyton Lewis (Sr./Kansas City, Mo.) is in his first season with the Hornets after previously playing at Baker and Bluefield State. Lewis is batting .283 with an OBP of .365 through 12 starts. Lewis has three home runs, five doubles, and ten runs scored on the season.
Infielder Brady Unrein (Fr./Wichita, Kan.) is in his first season with Emporia State and has made 13 starts at shortstop while playing in 15 games. Unrein has six hits, three home runs, six walks and ten runs scored, while posting a .981 fielding percentage in the early stages of the season.
Utility Andy Pacheco (R-Fr./Tucson, Ariz.) has made nine starts across three positions to start the season and played in 13 games. Pacheco is batting .176 with a .260 OBP and seven RBI through his 13 nine games played.
Utility Dominic Felix (Jr./Tucson, Ariz.) is in his first season with the Hornets and has started 13 games and is batting .408 with two home runs, seven RBI, five doubles, ten runs scored while reaching base at a .453 clip. Felix has also posted a team-high six multiple hit games and has reached base in 13 straight games, tied with Noah Steele for the longest streak this season.
Utility Sammy Padilla (RS-Fr./Tucson, Ariz.) has played in eight games and made six starts, including five of the last six games over the past two weeks. Padilla has started at second base, left field and center field in his six starts.
Outfielder Noah Steele (Jr./Prairie Village, Kan.) has made 15 starts and played in 16 games in his first season with the Hornets and has settled into the heart of the order for Emporia State. Steele has three home runs, 12 RBI, five doubles, 13 runs scored and a team-high 22 hits. Steele has also reached base in 13 consecutive games.
Outfielder Elijah Reeves (Jr./Casper, Wyo.) has started ten games in centerfield in his first season at Emporia State, Reeves is batting .214, but has drawn eight walks, as he has posted a .463 OBP across 41 plate appearances.
Outfielder Cooper Schwindt (Jr./Shawnee, Kan.) has started 16 games in the corner outfield positions in his first season with the Hornets and is batting .291 with four doubles, two home runs, nine RBI and a .379 OBP in 64 plate appearances.
Outfielder Gus Keller (Fr./Pittsburg, Kan.) has made four starts and has played in ten games to begin his freshman season with the Hornets. Keller has drawn four walks, scored three runs and reached base in seven of 19 plate appearances.
ON THE MOUND
Cade Barton (Sr./Omaha, Neb.) is in year four with the Hornets and has 41 career appearances with four this season. In 2024, Barton earned Honorable Mention All-MIAA despite suffering a late season injury as he posted a 3.18 ERA in 62.1 innings pitched. Barton has pitched 15.0 innings this season as he progresses back from injury, and has pitched 9.0 innings with 11 strikeouts in his last two starts.
Ian Lanik (Sr./Eagle, Neb.) is in year three with the Hornets and has pitched in 36 career games. This season, all seven of Lanik's appearances have come out of the bullpen as he has picked up three saves on the season. Lanik has pitched 10.0 innings and has recorded 15 strikeouts.
Trent Warstler (Sr./Celina, Texas) has made five starts this season and has pitched 18.0 innings in his five outings. Warstler has struck out 11 batters this season and has 53 strikeouts across 21 appearances the last two seasons for the Hornets.
Eli Hernandez (Sr./Ontario, Calif.) is in his second season with the Hornets and made 18 relief appearances in 2024. In his four appearances this season, Hernandez has pitched 17.1 innings and has 23 strikeouts, including a season-high six strikeouts in his last outing against Hillsdale.
Seth Stover (So./Columbus, Kan.) is in his second season with the Hornets and has 18 career appearances and 16 starts. Stover has made five starts this season and has pitched a team-high 26.0 innings in his five outings, including 13.0 across his last two starts, with just one earned run allowed while tallying seven strikeouts.
Tanner Dawe (Sr./London, Ontario) has 17 career appearances and has made four this season. Dawe has totaled 5.1 innings with six strikeouts and a .238 opponent batting average. His first appearance was an eight-out save against East Central on opening weekend.
Graeme Rios (Jr./Houston, Texas) has made four appearances in his first season with the Hornets, including one start. Rios' first outing came in the season opener against MSU Denver as he pitched 3.0 scoreless relief innings and he has pitched 12.1 innings this season while picking up two wins.
Grant Huffman (Sr./Lee's Summit, Mo.) is in his third season at Emporia State and has 17 career appearances with four this season. Huffman has pitched 7.2 innings in relief, and allowed a .250 batting average with ten strikeouts and has a 1-0 record.
Brandon Vassalo (Jr./Santa Fe, Texas) has made four relief appearances for Emporia State in his first season with the program. Vassalo has pitched 4.2 innings and has three strikeouts while allowing a .263 batting average.
Gerardo Grijalva (Jr./Tucson, Ariz.) made his first career start last weekend in the first game against Hillsdale, and went 5.1 innings allowing two earned runs on four hits with two strikeouts.
HORNET HISTORY
Emporia State is playing their 74th season of baseball in 2025 and have won over 2100 games in the program's history. Since 1994, the Hornets have advanced to the MIAA Tournament in 25 of 30 seasons (excluding COVID shortened season in 2020), including 19 straight trips from 2003-2022.
The Hornets have also won the MIAA Regular Season Title on six occasions with the most recent coming in 2017 and the first happening in 1993. Emporia State has also won the MIAA Tournament twice with wins in 2007 and 2014. The Hornets have also been runners up in the MIAA Tournament on four occasions.
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
In addition to the success in the MIAA, the Hornets have had a presence in the NCAA Tournament throughout their time in Division II. The Hornets have 14 NCAA regional appearances, including two Regional Championships which allowed Emporia State to advance to their two NCAA D-II College World Series Appearances. The first appearance happened in 2006 and the second happened in the 2009 season. In 2009, the Hornets advanced to the College World Series final where they fell 2-1 against Lynn.
NAIA NATIONAL PRESENCE
Prior to their transition to the Division II level in the early 1990's, Emporia State had sustained success at the NAIA level. From 1969 under Jack Smitheran to 1991 in year four under Brian Embery, the Hornets were NAIA District 10 Champions 20 times, including 15 of 16 from 1975 to 1991.
The success continued through the NAIA Area Tournament, as Emporia State won seven Area 3 Championships, advancing to the NAIA College World Series seven times. After advancing to the NAIA College World Series semifinals for the first time in 1976, the Hornets returned in 1978 as they won the NAIA College World Series with an 8-6 win against Missouri Southern.
