Senior Day Saturday Sees Emporia State Softball Playing Host to Newman

Softball | 4/18/2025 11:01:00 PM

Emporia State Hornets (27-21, 7-13 MIAA) vs Newman Jets (7-39, 2-18 MIAA)
Saturday, April 19 | 12:00 p.m.
Emporia, Kan. | Trusler Sports Complex
Overall: ESU leads 23-5  Last Meeting: at NU 7, ESU 4 (3/9/24)
Radio: KFFX 104.9FM Internet Audio: kvoe.com Video: The MIAA Network
Live Stats | Ticket Info | Complete Game Notes in pdf
Up Next: at Washburn
Saturday, April 26 | 1:00 p.m.
Topeka, Kan. | Gahnstrom Field

SENIOR DAY SEND OFF 
Emporia State plays their final home double header of the season against Newman. It will be the final home action for seniors Haley Garnett, Jordan Harrison, Gracie Rabe and Jayda VanAckeren. Fans that bring a box of cereal to donate to the Salvation Army food bank will receive free admission to the double header.

LAST TIME OUT
None of the four runs in Emporia State's 3-1 game one win came in via a hit.
Drury took advantage of lead off triple followed by a sac fly to go up 1-0 in the first inning. Taryn Burkhardt hit a grounder to first and Jordan Harrison beat the throw home to tie the score at 1-1.  Sydney Wagner plated Haley Garnett on a ground out as ESU took the lead for good. In the top of the third Garnett hit a sac fly to score Ally Miller to make it 3-1. 
Jordan Harrison went the distance allowing one run on seven hits with five strikeouts and no walks.
The Hornets out hit the Panthers 6-4 but left seven runners on base in a 2-1 loss in the nightcap.
Drury scored one run in the first and one in the third to take an early lead. In the fourth Kinsey Perine singled through the right side to score Garnett and get the Hornets within a run. Kinsey Perine was two for three with an RBI.

ABOUT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 27-21, 7-13 in the MIAA. They are 19-1 against teams under .500 on the season. 
The Hornets are second in the MIAA and 18th in the nation with 98 total stolen bases. Brooke Flewelling is fifth in the league and 43rd in the nation in home runs, is seventh in the MIAA in RBI, fifth in slugging percentage and eighth in OPS. Taryn Burkhardt is third in the association and 15th nationally in stolen bases and third in the MIAA in walks drawn. Kinsey Perine is tenth in the conference in stolen bases.
In the circle, the Hornets are fourth in the MIAA in strikeout to walk ratio and are led by a trio of seniors. Gracie Rabe leads the MIAA in appearances, is ranked second in walks allowed per seven innings, fourth in shutouts and WHIP, and sixth in strikeout to walk ratio and innings pitched. Jordan Harrison is fourth in the league strikeout to walk ratio, fifth in appearances, sixth in complete games and innings pitched, and seventh in strikeouts. Jayda VanAckeren is one of just three MIAA pitchers to have given up just two or fewer homers on the season.
Emporia State has a team fielding percentage of .962 to rank ninth in the MIAA.

IN THE DUGOUT
April Rosales is in her tenth season leading the Emporia State softball program. Her record as head coach for the Hornets is 266-243. 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.
She is 10-4 against Newman.
Andrea Gustafson is 78-188 in her sixth year at Newman. She is 2-6 against Emporia State.

SCOUTING THE JETS
Newman is 7-39 on the season, 2-18 in the MIAA. They have lost 13 of their last 14 games and are 1-11 on the road this season. They are 12th in the MIAA with a .250 batting average and have just one home run on the season and are last the Association with 13 stolen bases. AJ Borja is third in the MIAA in walks, fifth in on base percentage, seventh in doubles and eighth triples. They are ranked last in the MIAA with a 7.46 team ERA and are allowing teams to hit .374 against them. Six pitchers have at least 15.0 innings this year and all six of them have at least ten appearance and two starts.  Paola Zamacona has a team best 6.33 ERA in 25 games with 11 starts. The Jets are 12th in the MIAA with a .954 fielding percentage but have turned a league high 24 double plays.

SERIES HISTORY
The Hornets lead the all-time series 23-5 and have won nine of the last 11 meetings. Emporia State has won five straight at the Trusler Sports Complex since 2018.   

LAST AT BAT WITH NEWMAN
After winning the first game of their double header 15-4 in five innings, Emporia State fell 7-4 in the night cap in Wichita.
In game two Newman took a 2-0 lead with a two-out, two RBI single in the bottom of the first and extended it to 5-0 in the third inning.
An RBI double from Lexi Williams cut the deficit to 5-1. Newman grabbed two more runs in the bottom half, as their lead grew to 7-1 heading into the final two innings. RBI singles from Haley Garnett and Emma Furnish in the sixth pulled the Hornets within four runs but Emporia State stranded a pair of runners as they still trailed 7-3 heading to the bottom of the sixth.
Lexi Williams led off the seventh with a triple and then came in to score on an error from Newman. The Hornets were unable to comeback any further as they fell 7-4.
Lexi Williams had two hits while Alexis Dial, Bailey Flewelling and Haley Garnett each had one hit.

OFF AND RUNNING
The Hornets have led or finished inside the top three in the MIAA in stolen bases in eight of the last nine seasons and are in that position again this season. Emporia State is 98 of 113 on the base paths, with their 98 total steals ranking second in the MIAA and 18th in the nation. Four players have at least ten stolen bases led by Taryn Burkhardt with 34 steals on the season. Burkhardt needs three steals to tie Morgan Viola for fifth on the ESU single season chart.

ROAD WARRIORS 
Emporia State played 34 games before they made their home debut at the Trusler Sports Complex on March 28 against Neb.-Kearney. It was the latest home opening date for the Hornets since opening the 2022 season on April 1 after playing 32 games away from Trusler. Emporia State will play 42 of their 52 regular season games away from Trusler this year.

HEART STOPPING HORNETS
Emporia State has played in 16 one-run games so far this season, and have gone 8-8 in those games, which includes a pair of eight-inning victories, an eight inning and a nine inning loss. They have a 3-3 record in extra inning games. They have gone 5-1 in two run games this season. In the first nine years under Rosales, the Hornets finished .500 or better in one-run games eight times, and ESU won 11 one-run games in 2024, their most in a single season in Rosales' tenure.

REGIONAL RANKINGS
The first official NCAA Central Regional Rankings were released in alphabetical order this week and the MIAA has four of the ten teams mentioned. 

IN THE FIELD
Catcher/Designated Player Ally Miller (So./Olathe, KS) is batting .306 in 38 games with 28 starts at catcher and eight at DP this season. She has seven doubles, a triple, a home run, 20 RBI and a .353 on base percentage. 
First baseman Haley Garnett (Gr./Olathe, KS) is in year three with the Hornets and has played in 128 games at Emporia State. In 47 starts this year she is batting .224 with a .326 on base percentage, 15 walks, five doubles, a triple and two home runs.
Second baseman Mallory Moore (Fr./Flower Mound, TX) has started 35 of her 40 games as a true freshman. She is batting .275 including a .357 average with two outs. 
Third baseman Brooke Flewelling (So./Holton, KS) is in year two with the Hornets after playing in 35 games as a freshman. She is hitting .311 with 11 home runs, nine doubles and two triples for a .697 slugging percentage and 1.114 OPS. She has 41 RBI on the year and joined Alexis Dial from last season as the only Hornets since 2014 with 20 or more RBI within the first 20 games of the season.
Shortstop Sydney Wagner (Fr./Buda, TX) has started 47 games for the Hornets in her first season. She is batting .349 with seven doubles, a triple, 25 runs scored and 18 RBI. She is batting .389 with runners on base and .392 with runners in scoring position.
Outfielder Taryn Burkhardt (Jr./Silver Lake, KS) is in her first year with the Hornets after transferring from Johnson County CC. Burkhardt has started all 48 games in center field and is batting .285 with a team-high 36 runs scored and 31 walks drawn. She has a .415 on base percentage overall and a .485 OBP while leading off an inning. Burkhardt is 34 of 39 on stolen bases this year and needs three to tie Morgan Viola (37 of 42 in 2005) for fifth on the Hornets all-time single season list. She had a .411 batting average and stole 68 bases in two seasons at Johnson County CC, twice earning All-Region VI honors.
Outfielder Juliana De Luna (So./San Antonio, TX) played in 30 games as a freshman last season and has started 47 of her 48 games this season. She is batting .288 and has reached base at a .375 clip. She has 27 runs scored and 24 RBI this spring.
Outfielder Kinsey Perine (Fr./Rossville, KS) has started all 48 games as a true freshman. She is batting .276 on the season with 19 RBI, 23 runs scored and 16 stolen bases. She is eight for nine in RBI opportunities with a runner on third and less than two outs. Her mother Shanna (Spann) was a starter for the Lady Hornets 1998 national runner up women's basketball team.
Catcher/designated player Leslie Ramos (Jr./Grand Island, NE) is in her first season with the Hornets after transferring from Barton CC. She has played in 36 games with 20 starts at catcher and 11 at DP. She is hitting .263 overall and .304 with runners on base. She hit .356 with a .468 on base percentage and .554 slugging percentage in 85 games for the Cougars.
Infielder/designated player Kennedy Topping (So./Wichita, KS) has played in 25 games with 16 starts this season with eight starts at second base, six at DP, and two at third base. She is batting .320 on the year with a .500 average with two outs.
Infielder Brynley Smith (Fr./Wichita, Kan.) is batting .261 in 13 games with eight starts as a true freshman including three at second base, two at third and two at short stop. She is is two for three in pinch hitting situations.

IN THE CIRCLE
Senior Gracie Rabe (Sr./Rossville, KS) is in her fourth season with the Hornets and has pitched in 457.0 career innings over 106 games with 71 starts for Emporia State. She is 9-10 with a 2.46 ERA, four shutouts and two saves this season. She has struck out 73 while walking just 21 in 125.1 innings.
Senior Jordan Harrison (Sr./St. Mary's, KS) is in year two at Emporia State after tossing 88.0 innings last season. She is 13-7 with a 3.30 ERA, 113 strikeouts and just 30 walks in 125.1 innings this season.
Senior Jayda VanAckeren (Sr./Omaha, NE) has made 77 appearances over her four years in the circle for the Hornets and has a 22-10 career record. She is 5-4 this season with a shutout and 3.64 ERA.

HORNET HISTORY
Emporia State finished as the NCAA Division II National Runners-up in 2006 and 2008. The Hornets have qualified for NCAA Regional play 13 times. ESU won the NAIA National Championship in 1983 and 1984 and won the AIAW National Championship in 1980.
The Hornets were MIAA regular season champions four straight years from 2005-08 and MIAA Tournament champions seven straight years running from 2004-10. In the 21st Century, Emporia State has claimed the regular season title eight times (2005-08, 2010-12, 2014) and the tournament title nine times (2004-10, 2012, 2018).

30 FOR 30
The Hornets 21-9 record was their best start after 30 games since going 23-7 to start the 2015 season. That team would finish the year 35-20, 16-9 in the MIAA.