March 14, 2025 – Emporia State baseball tallied 19 hits and scored double-digit runs for the third time in four games as the Hornets outlasted Rogers State 14-13 on Friday afternoon at Trusler Sports Complex.
Rogers State got the scoring started in the top of the first as the Hillcats pushed across two runs on three hits to grab the early lead over Emporia State. In the bottom half, the Hornets wasted little time responding, as
Logan Myers,
Peyton Lewis and
TJ Racherbaumer all singled in the first three at-bats, with Racherbaumer's single scoring Myers.
Noah Steele drove in Lewis with a sac fly to knot the score at 2-2. With one out,
Cooper Schwindt singled to score Racherbaumer as the Hornets took a 3-2 lead into the second.
The Hillcats would pull level in the top of the second, before Emporia State would again answer in the bottom half, this time with two runs to take a 5-3 lead. In the third, the Hillcats scratched across another run, cutting the Hornet lead to 5-4. Both offenses posted their first scoreless times at-bat before the Hornet offense exploded for eight runs in the bottom of the fourth, the most in a single frame this season.
Peyton Lewis and
TJ Racherbaumer got the inning started with singles, and after the first out, scored on a three-run home by
Cooper Schwindt to make the score 8-4. The final five runs in the inning all came with two outs, as the Hornets got a two-run home run by
Sammy Padilla and a three-run home run by
Peyton Lewis in his second at-bat of the inning to extend the Emporia State lead to 13-4.
Over the next two innings, Rogers State rallied back into the game, as they scored three in the fifth and six in the sixth, with all six runs in the frame coming with two outs as the Hillcats cut the Emporia State lead to 14-13 heading to the seventh.
In the seventh, both the Hornets and Hillcats were held without a hit, as Emporia State held onto their 14-13 lead. Rogers State threatened in the eighth, putting two runners on base as the Hornets were forced to make a pitching change as
Ian Lanik took over on the mound with two outs and two on. Lanik was able to force a ground ball to
Brady Unrein on shortstop to end the inning and preserve the lead.
Lanik returned to the mound in the top of the ninth and retired Rogers State in order, including with an off-speed pitch for a strikeout to complete the four-out save and give Emporia State the 14-13 win in game one of the series.
Graeme Rios picked up the win for the Hornets, his third of the season as he had five strikeouts in 5.0 innings of work.
Ian Lanik's save was his fourth of the season as retired all four batters he faced.
At the plate, six Hornets posted multi-hit games, including
Peyton Lewis who went 5-6 with four runs scored and his three-run home run in the fourth inning.
Cooper Schwindt drove in four runs while
TJ Racherbaumer and
Sammy Padilla each had two of their own.
Game two of the series between the Hornets and Hillcats will be on Saturday, March 15 with first pitch scheduled for 2:00 p.m. from the Trusler Sports Complex.
