Baseball | 4/30/2025 4:37:00 PM
Games 45-47
Emporia State Hornets (23-21, 16-17 MIAA)
at Northwest Missouri Bearcats (22-24, 16-17 MIAA)
Thursday, May 1 • 3:00 p.m. • Maryville, Mo. • Bearcat Baseball Field
Friday, May 2 • 2:00 p.m. • Maryville, Mo. • Bearcat Baseball Field
Saturday, May 3 • 12:00 p.m. • Maryville, Mo. • Bearcat Baseball Field
The MIAA Network •
Live Stats •
Complete Notes in pdf
Series History: ESU leads 73-44
• Last Meeting: ESU 14, NWMSU 10 (2/25/24)
Up Next: MIAA Tournament • May 7-11 • Joplin, Mo.
QUICK HITS
- The Hornets and Bearcats are two of the three teams currently sitting at 16-17 in the MIAA, along with Rogers State, as seeding for the MIAA Tournament comes down to the final weekend.
- Emporia State has won the series against Northwest Missouri each of the last five seasons, including each of the past two seasons in Maryville.
- The Hornets are 23-21 this season, as the series win over Arkansas-Fort Smith last weekend secure the most wins for Emporia State since 2019.
- Emporia State has 68 home runs, the most by an Emporia State team since the Hornets hit 70 in 2016.
FINAL WEEKEND AGAINST THE BEARCATS
Emporia State is travels to Maryville, Mo. for three pivotal games against Northwest Missouri on May 1-3. The Hornets and Bearcats are two of five times currently separated by just one game in spots 5-9 in the MIAA standings.
LAST TIME OUT
Emporia State hosted Arkansas-Fort Smith for the first ever matchup between the Hornets and Lions in the penultimate home series of the 2025 season. The Hornets took game one 12-8, which featured three-hit games from Peyton Lewis and Noah Steele, as Steele homered twice and drove in four runs. After falling in game two of the series, the Hornets bounced back with a 10-3 win in the finale, as Emporia State scored five in the second and four in the eighth on their way to a series win.
A LOOK AT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 23-21 this season and 16-17 in the MIAA, as they are one of five teams in 5-9 in the MIAA standings that are separated by just one game. The Hornets are led offensively by Noah Steele who is batting .384 which ranks sixth in the MIAA. The junior from Prairie Village has a 1.202 OPS and 15 home runs, which rank third and fifth in the association respectively. In addition to 15 home runs from Steele, five Hornets have seven or more homers on the season. Four Hornets have drawn 21 or more walks this season, including TJ Racherbaumer who leads the way with 30 and has 121 in his career, which ranks fourth in program history. In addition to walks, Racherbaumer ranks inside the top ten in six more career categories. On the mound, the weekends have been highlighted by Cade Barton and Seth Stover who have 4.25 and 4.28 ERA's respectively. The pair have combined to strikeout 75 batters and allow just 15 walks in 122.1 combined innings. Nick Woodcock has also continuously increased his role for the Hornets, and has tallied 20 strikeouts in 12.2 innings pitched over his last four outings. The bullpen has seen four pitchers make 11 or more relief appearances, including Ryan Sauter who has a 4.37 ERA in 14 appearances, while striking out 15 in his last 11.1 innings. Ian Lanik has pitched in a team-high 16 games and has seven saves which is third in the MIAA and the most by a Hornet pitcher since 2017.
SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
Northwest Missouri is 22-24 on the season and like the Hornets, are 16-17 in the MIAA which includes a pair of midweek wins over Central Missouri. The Bearcats are led offensively by a host of players hitting above .300 this season, with Dylan Hufft leading the way, hitting .356. Ryan Williams, Chester Brooks and Kaehukai Young are also above .300 and Young is tied for the team lead with nine home runs. Ashton Neuman is tied with Young, tallying nine home runs on the season and has a team-high .997 OPS. On the mound, Jaren Buck and Ben Haug have been staples in the weekend rotation and Buck has a 3.94 across 48.0 innings pitched. Haug has a team-high 73 strikeouts, which is fourth in the MIAA this season. Four Bearcat pitchers have made double-digit relief appearances, including Logan Brasel who has a 3.76 with a .222 opponent batting average.
UP NEXT
Emporia State will travel to Joplin, Mo. for the MIAA Tournament which begins on Wednesday, May 7 for seeds 7-10, with the quarterfinals on Thursday, May 8.
TOP OF THE HILL
Head coach Brad Hill is in his second season as the head coach at Emporia State and is 44-50 back at this alma mater. Hill has won 930 games in his 26 seasons as a four year head coach, and including his three seasons at Hutchinson Community College from 1988-90, he has won 1,013 games in 28-plus seasons in his head coaching career. Hill was twice named Big 12 and ABCA Midwest Coach of the Year at K-State and won a national championship in 2003 at Central Missouri.
In 2024, Emporia State baseball not only improved their win total by three games from 2023 in the first season under head coach Brad Hill, but improved in a multitude of categories, both offensively and on the mound. The Hornets saw notable jumps in batting average, OPS, OBP and walks while dropping the number of strikeouts. On the mound, the Hornets put together a team ERA nearly 80 points below the 2023 mark and dropped the opponent batting average against from .316 to .303.
RANKED MATCHUPS
Emporia State's ranked win over #23 Rogers State at the Trusler Sports Complex earlier this season was the first series win over a ranked opponent for the Hornets since 2019 when Emporia State took two of three games from #18 Central Oklahoma on the road in Edmond. The Hornets have played nine ranked matchups this season, the most since 2019.
TOP TEN TJ
Catcher TJ Racherbaumer (Sr./Herrmann, Mo.) is in year four with the Hornets and has played in 189 career games, as he passed Tim Barger for seventh-most in Emporia State history. In addition to career games played, Racherbaumer ranks fourth in walks (121), fourth in at-bats (650), seventh in base hits (192), seventh in doubles (39), eighth in home runs (27), ninth in runs scored (141). He also completed the cycle against Northeastern State, becoming the second Hornet to achieve it in the NCAA era.
MY OH MYERS
Infielder Logan Myers (So./Pittsburg, Kan.) is hitting .335 this season with six home runs, 38 RBI and 46 runs scored. Myers holds a 12-game hitting streak entering the weekend and is hitting .456 in that span, with ten doubles, 18 RBI and eight multi-hit games. He is also hitting .320 in 87 career games for the Hornets.
BRADY BOMBS
Shortstop Brady Unrein (Fr./Wichita, Kan.) has become a consistent starter at shortstop for the Hornets in his first season, and along with strong defense, has brought a power element to the lineup. Unrein has eight home runs, the most by a Hornet freshman since TJ Racherbaumer tallied ten in 2022. His eight long balls include a walk-off, two-run homer in the tenth inning of the series finale against Rogers State to seal the series win.
FIRST IN A DECADE
Infielder Peyton Lewis (Sr./Kansas City, Mo.) is in year one with the Hornets and has made an immediate impact on the Emporia State lineup. Earlier this season, Lewis went 2-4 against Maryville (3/9), beginning a six-game streak of multi-hit games, becoming the first Hornet since Justin Harris in 2015 (7 games) to record more than five in a row, and has 14 on the season. Lewis is hitting .346 with 21 extra-base hits and 30 RBI.
KING FELIX
Utility Dominic Felix (Jr./Tucson, Ariz.) has played both corner infield positions this season and has a .279 batting average in 40 starts. Similar to Lewis, Felix had a stretch of consecutive multi-hit games earlier this season, as he rattled off five in a row, including three games with three hits. Felix has also reached base in 36 of his 40 starts while doing so in 17 of his last 18 games.
SPEEDING SAMMY
Utility Sammy Padilla (R-Fr./Tucson, Ariz.) has become an important utility player for the Hornets in his second season in Emporia, playing in 33 games across all three outfield positions and second base. Padilla is batting .300 and reaching base at a .458 rate while stealing four bases and being one of four players with multiple triples this season.
COOP AND A BLAST
Outfielder Cooper Schwindt (Jr./Shawnee, Kan.) has started 43 games for Emporia State in his first year with the Hornets. Schwindt has seven home runs, ten doubles, 33 RBI and a .266 average while also being third on the team in RBI and doubles on the season.
TAKE ME TO THE ER
Outfielder Elijah Reeves (Jr./Casper, Wyo.) has played in 38 games and while he is hitting .256 in 90 at-bats, Reeves has drawn 17 walks and been a ball-magnet, being hit by a pitch nine times en route to a .415 OBP. Reeves has also stolen nine bases this season. In the series opener against Washburn, Reeves went 4-5 with four RBI, marking career-highs in both in the 14-8 win against the Ichabods.
STEELE TRAP
Outfielder/First Basemen Noah Steele (Jr./Prairie Village, Kan.) is hitting .384 this season in the heart of the Hornet batting order and has a team-high 15 home runs while also leading Emporia State with 61 hits, 52 RBI and a 1.202 OPS. Steele has also reached base in 39 of 42 starts this season and has 16 multi-hit games. He has also recorded an RBI in 13 of the last 16 games with 24 total in that span.
HOLY TOLEDO
First Basemen Jovanni Toledo (So./Tucson, Ariz.) has eight home runs, six doubles and 31 RBI this season. Toledo's biggest hit of the season was a pinch-hit home run in the bottom of the ninth of the series finale against Rogers State, as the Hornets rallied to win the finale 9-8 in ten innings, securing the first ranked series win since 2019. Toledo is hitting .310 in 53 career games over his first two seasons at Emporia State.
CONSISTENT CADE
Pitcher Cade Barton (Sr./Omaha, Neb.) is in year four with the Hornets and has 48 appearances and 33 starts in his Emporia State career. Barton is posting a 4.25 ERA in 55.0 innings this season as he has worked back from an injury suffered in the final month of the 2024 season. Barton has gone 6.0 or more innings in five of his last seven starts, including 7.1 shutout innings against Missouri Southern and 8.1 innings while allowing just three hits against #1 Central Missouri. His start against Washburn marked the 13th start for Barton of at least 6.0 innings pitched in the last two seasons.
HOT OFF THE STOVE
Pitcher Seth Stover (So./Columbus, Kan.) has made 12 starts this season and is up to 23 starts and 25 appearances in his two seasons with the Hornets. Stover is posting a 4.28 ERA in 67.1 innings, while striking out 42 with just 13 walks allowed. He currently ranks eighth in the MIAA in innings pitched and fourth in walks allowed. Stover has also pitched 5.0 or more innings in eight of his 12 starts this season and has pitched 7.0 innings in three outings.
LATE INNING LANIK
Pitcher Ian Lanik (Sr./Eagle, Neb.) is in year three at Emporia State, and after tallying 29 starts over his first two years with the Hornets, has transitioned to the bullpen in 2025, where he has been a consistent arm at the back end. Lanik has a team-high 16 appearances and has converted seven saves. His seven saves are the most in a single season by a Hornet pitcher since Nathan Whitcomb recorded 11 saves in 2017.
SOUGHT AFTER SAUTER
Pitcher Ryan Sauter (Jr./Olathe, Kan.) has pitched 22.2 innings across 14 appearances and has a 1-1 record with one save and 23 strikeouts. Sauter has 15 strikeouts and just five earned runs allowed over his last 12.2 innings, including no earned runs and three strikeouts in a three inning save in the opener against Washburn, the first save of his career.
CHOPPING WOOD
Pitcher Nick Woodcock (Whitby, Ontario) is in year one at Emporia State and has nine appearances. Woodcock struck out eight in three innings in a win against Maryville and struck out three against Missouri Southern in the series finale to seal the series win and earn a five-out save. His first start came in the last series against Northeastern State, as Woodcock struck out eight in a career-high 4.0 innings pitched. Woodcock has also struck out three or more batters in seven of his nine appearances.
GUTTY GRAEME
Pitcher Graeme Rios (Jr./Houston, Texas) has 13 appearances and six starts in his first year with Emporia State, including starts in four Friday games. Rios holds a 5-2 record and has 25 strikeouts on the season, including his fifth win of the season after 5.2 relief innings with three strikeouts in game one against Arkansas-Fort Smith.
G2 TUESDAY
Pitcher Gerardo Grijalva (Jr./Tucson, Ariz.) is in his first year at Emporia State and has six starts this season, including the nod in five of the six MIAA midweek matchups. Grijalva has 17 strikeouts in 26.0 innings while allowing just a .250 opponent batting average.
BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK
Emporia State's series win over Missouri Southern marked three consecutive weekend series wins for the Hornets after previously beating #23 Rogers State and Newman the two weekends prior. For the Hornets, the back-to-back-to-back series wins mark the first time since the 2019 season that Emporia State has won three consecutive series' over MIAA opponents.
POWER SURGE
On the season, the Hornets have a team total of 64 home runs, which currently ranks third in the MIAA this season. Six Hornets have hit seven or more home runs this season, including junior Noah Steele who has a team-high 13 which ranks tied for fifth in the MIAA. As a team, Emporia State has homered three or more times in a game 12 times this season, with a season-high six in an 18-11 win over Maryville (3/7).
HOW SWEEP IT IS
In addition to winning the series against Newman at the end of spring break, which was the first series sweep for the Hornets since 2021, Emporia State's sweep of Northeastern State in their last road series marked the first time since 2019 that the Hornets have picked up multiple series sweeps in the same season.
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.Â
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.Â
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.Â
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.Â
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.
