May 1, 2025 – Emporia State baseball fell in game one of the series on the road against Northwest Missouri as the Bearcats took Thursday's matchup 10-6 over the Hornets.
Through the first three innings, Emporia State was retired in order by Ben Haug, the Bearcat starter and the hosts grabbed two runs in each of the first two innings to take a 4-0 lead. The Hornets finally broke onto the scoreboard in the fourth inning, scoring two runs.
Two walks and a single loaded the bases with no outs in the inning, and after a strikeout, a sac fly from
Jovanni Toledo and a two-out single by
Cooper Schwindt pulled helped the Hornets cut the deficit in half to 4-2.
Northwest Missouri would restore their four-run advantage in the fifth, using a single and a home run with two outs to make the score 6-2. Following a scoreless sixth from both teams, the Bearcats added another to their total in the seventh on a solo home run by Jacob Selock to make the score 7-2.
In the eighth, the Hornets rallied against Haug with three straight singles, included an RBI from
Peyton Lewis to make the score 7-3.
Noah Steele drew a walk against Haug to load the bases, which forced a move to the bullpen for Northwest Missouri.
TJ Racherbaumer drew an HBP as the first batter to face the Bearcat reliever to push across another run. Emporia State picked up two more runs on a sac fly from
Jovanni Toledo and a wild pitch but eventually left the possible tying run on third as the Hornets trailed 7-6 heading to the bottom half.
The Bearcats responded in their last at-bat, scoring three runs on three hits and two errors to build a 10-6 lead heading to the ninth. Emporia State was unable to rally in their last chance at the plate, as the Hornets were retired in order, falling 10-6 in the series opener.
The Hornets managed just seven hits, with
Peyton Lewis and
Sammy Padilla each going 2-4 at the plate.
Jovanni Toledo drove in two runs while Lewis,
TJ Racherbaumer and
Cooper Schwindt each had RBI of their own.
On the mound, the Hornets struck out nine and allowed just one walk but allowed the Bearcats to score multiple runs in four different innings.
Game two between the Hornets and Bearcats is set for 2:00 p.m. on Friday, May 2.
