Softball | 3/17/2026 12:44:00 PM

QUICK HITS

• Emporia State is 16-7 and 3-1 in the MIAA this season, which is the first time since 2017 that the Hornets have won three of their first four in MIAA action.
• The Hornets swept #18 Rogers State in their doubleheader to open MIAA action, which marked their first win over the Hillcats since 2022 and their first doubleheader sweep over RSU since 2019.
• Brooke Flewelling has ten home runs on the season, just one shy of her total from 2025 and currently is ranked second in the MIAA.
• In the circle, Hannah Butterbaugh leads a staff of five pitchers with an 8-2 record over 69.0 innings. Her 69 innings is tied for fourth in the MIAA this season while her ERA of 1.22 is second. 
• Emporia State's team ERA is 2.42, the third-best mark in the association, while allowing just 51 walks, the lowest tally in the MIAA.

SPRING BREAK IN SPRINGFIELD
Emporia State travels to Springfield, Mo. for a road doubleheader against Drury on Wednesday afternoon.

LAST TIME OUT
The Hornets opened their MIAA schedule with home doubleheaders against #18 Rogers State and Northeastern State at the Trusler Sports Complex and went 3-1 on the weekend. Game one against the Hillcats went to extras as neither team scored through seven frames, and after Rogers State took a 1-0 lead in the eighth, the Hornets walked off the Hillcats on a three-run home run by Avery Brewer. Emporia State then scored six in the first inning of game two on their way to a 10-4 win for the sweep.
Against Northeastern State, the Hornets fell in the first game 6-2, but rebounded in the second, picking up an 8-3 win to secure the split against the Riverhawks.

ABOUT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 16-7 and 3-1 in the MIAA this season as the Hornets have won three of their first four MIAA games for the first time since 2017. The Hornets are hitting .309 as a team, which is tied for sixth in the MIAA. Brooke Flewelling has been a key factor in the Hornets hitting the long ball so far, as she has ten of her own, which is just one shy of her total last season. Flewelling is hitting .405 this season with a 1.333 OPS. Her ten home runs rank second in the MIAA while her OPS is the third-best mark. While Flewelling has the team-high in average, seven more players have an average north of .300 that have played in 14 or more games this season. Sydney Wagner and Taryn Burkhardt are hitting .310 and .338 respectively at the top of the order. Avery Brewer has five home runs while Addison Callaway and Brynley Smith each have two and are hitting above .340.
Emporia State's strength this so far this season has been their ability to limit runs for the opposition, as the Hornets have the third-best ERA in the MIAA at 2.42, behind only #3 Missouri Southern and #11 Pittsburg State. Freshman Hannah Butterbaugh's 1.22 ERA ranks second in the conference as she has a 8-2 record while allowing opponents to hit just .211 against her. In addition to Butterbaugh, Izzy Sloan and Chloe Wilson have been been staples on the pitching staff, making 15 and 11 appearances respectively this season.

SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
Drury is 9-12 this season and 2-2 through the first weekend of GLVC action, with splits against Missouri S&T and Lincoln. The Panthers have won 65 games over the previous two seasons, the first two under head coach Brooke Gajewski. Offensively the Panthers are hitting .233 as a team, with Isabel Ervin holding a team-high .292 average. Ervin is one of five players with seven or more RBI, while Reece Anderson has eight to lead the team.
Drury, like the Hornets have used five pitchers with three making double-digit appearances this season. Kaley Adzick has a 1.96 ERA in 50.0 innings, and has struck out a team-high 30 batters. Jordyn Foley has started ten games and has a 3.19 ERA over 52.2 innings pitched. Natalie Wilks has been the primary reliever for the Panthers, making nine appearances in relief with 18 strikeouts in 24.1 innings.

SERIES HISTORY
Emporia State leads the series with the Panthers 8-5 and won the most recent meeting earlier this season at the Washburn Invitational 11-0.

IN THE DUGOUT
Megan Hill is in her first season as the head coach for Emporia State and has started 16-7 this season. Hill has been with the Hornets since 2024, and after the opening weekend of her first season, she took over for April Rosales who was on leave due to doctor's orders regarding her pregnancy and went 30-15 over the remainder of the season.
Brooke Gajewski is in her third season with the Panthers and has 74-59 record while winning 30 or more games in each of her first two seasons.

IN THE CIRCLE
Hannah Butterbaugh (Fr./Lenexa, Kan.) has made an immediate impact to the Hornet pitching staff in her freshman campaign. Butterbaugh has a 1.22 ERA in 69.0 innings pitched while accumulating an 8-2 record. She was named MIAA Pitcher of the Week after a strong showing at the Washburn Invitational as she struck out 18 in 18.1 innings while posting a 0.38 ERA. Her 1.22 ERA is the second best mark in the MIAA this season.
Izzy Sloan (Jr./Indianola, IA) has become a staple in relief this season, as 12 of her 15 appearances have come in relief and she has a 2.72 across 28.1 innings. Sloan has three saves and a 1-0 record this season and has allowed just 27 hits.
Chloe Wilson (So./Kingwood, Texas) has a 3.38 ERA in 11 appearances and holds a 3-3 record. Her first outing with the Hornets was a 6.0 inning complete game shutout on opening weekend in her home state against East Central (1/30).

BEHIND THE PLATE
Leslie Ramos (Sr./Grand Island, Neb.) has played in 15 games with 11 starts at both DP and catcher. Ramos has a .378 OBP in 37 plate appearances with five runs scored and three RBI, including two in the last game against Northeastern State.
Addison Callaway (Fr./Leavenworth, Kan.) has come on strong of late, as she enters spring break with a hit in 10 of her last 11 games. She drove in two runs in both games against Augustana, including the eventual game-winning home run in game two. She also delivered the Hornets walkoff hit against Rockhurst (2/22) in the final game Washburn Invitational.

AROUND THE HORN
Avery Brewer (Jr./Jenks, Okla.) has started 21 games and is hitting .311 with five home runs and 17 RBI this season. Brewer homered in the season opener against Lewis (1/30) and has reached base in 17 of 21 games played. Brewer also delivered the walk-off home run in the eighth inning of game one against #18 Rogers State.
Brynley Smith (So./Wichita, Kan.) has made 11 starts, with six in the last six games. She is hitting .344 with two home runs, including a three-run home run against the Vikings (3/8). Smith has eight RBI and seven runs scored this season.
Karli Wehunt (Jr./Shidler, Okla.) has made 12 starts at second base and is hitting .282 this season with two doubles, one home run, five RBI and five runs scored.
Mallory Moore (So./Flower Mound, Texas) has 12 starts this season and is hitting .286 while reaching base in 16 of 41 plate appearances. 
Sydney Wagner (So./Buda, Texas) has started all 23 games and holds a .310 average a the top of the order. Wagner has scored 17 runs, drawn nine walks and is reaching base at a .388 clip.
Brooke Flewelling (Jr./Holton, Kan.) has been a standout in the Hornet order, batting .405 with a 1.333 OPS, while hitting ten home runs and driving in 26 runs. She has also added three doubles and scored a team-high 21 runs. Her ten home runs and 1.333 OPS are both top three in the MIAA this season.

OUT IN THE FIELD
Elina Bartlett (Jr./Cheney, Kan.) has made 17 starts in her first season with the Hornets and has a .365 OBP while driving in ten runs and scoring eight of her own. Bartlett has four multi-hit games this season.
Taryn Burkhardt (Sr./Silver Lake, Kan.) has seemingly picked up where she left off the 2025 season in which she stole 40 bases, as she is 18-18 so far in 2026. Burkhardt is batting .338 and is second on the Hornets with 18 runs scored. She has seven multi-hit games, including three hits in the second game against both Rogers State and Northeastern State. Burkhardt also has two games this season with three stolen bases.
Kinsey Perine (So./Rossville, Kan.) is hitting .296 with a .333 OBP this season while starting 19 games in right field. Perine posted a 4-4 performance in the last meeting against Drury at the Washburn Invitational (2/22) and also went 3-6 with two RBI and a triple in the doubleheader against Augustana (3/8).
Juliana De Luna (Jr./San Antonio, Texas) is in her third year with the Hornets and made nine starts. She has scored a pair of runs and has two steals with two RBI.

HORNET HISTORY
Emporia State has qualified for NCAA Regional play 13 times and finished as the NCAA Division II National Runners-up in 2006 and 2008. 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).