Softball | 3/20/2026 1:17:00 PM

• Emporia State is 17-8 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 leads the MIAA.
• In the circle, Hannah Butterbaugh leads a staff of five pitchers with an 8-2 record over 71.0 innings. Her 71 innings is fifth in the MIAA this season while her ERA of 1.18 is second.
• Emporia State's team ERA is 2.52, the fifth-best mark in the association, while allowing just 5e walks, the lowest tally in the MIAA.

SATURDAY IN THE AIR CAPITAL
Emporia State travels to Wichita for an MIAA doubleheader against Newman on Saturday afternoon.

LAST TIME OUT
The Hornets traveled to the Show Me State for a nonconference doubleheader against Drury in Springfield. In game one against the Panthers, the score was knotted at 1-1 through two innings, but Drury put together a four-run third frame which proved to be the difference. Emporia State got RBI from Brynley Smith, Ally Miller and Sydney Wagner but came up short, dropping the first game 5-4.
In game two, the Hornets scored four in the second and five in the third on their way to a 9-0 lead and eventually a 10-3 win in game two. Sydney Wagner, Taryn Burkhardt and Avery Brewer all drove in multiple runs while Wagner, Burkhardt, Brewer, Brynley Smith and Addison Callaway all had multi-hit games.

ABOUT THE HORNETS
Emporia State is 17-8 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 .314 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 .372 this season with a 1.227 OPS. Her ten home runs rank second in the MIAA while her OPS is the seventh-best mark. While Flewelling has the team-high in average, six 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 three and are hitting above .360.
Emporia State's strength this so far this season has been their ability to limit runs for the opposition, as the Hornets have the fifth-best ERA in the MIAA at 2.52. Freshman Hannah Butterbaugh's 1.18 ERA ranks second in the conference as she has a 8-2 record while allowing opponents to hit just .210 against her. In addition to Butterbaugh, Izzy Sloan and Chloe Wilson have been been staples on the pitching staff, making 16 and 11 appearances respectively this season.

SCOUTING THE JETS
Newman is 4-16 this season and will open their MIAA schedule against the Hornets on Saturday. The Jets traveled to the Branson Leadoff Classic and won their first three games of the season but have struggled since opening weekend. At the plate, the Jets are led by Malie Noda who leads the offense in most categories, as she is hitting .361 with six doubles, two home runs, 11 RBI and a .971 OPS. Lauren McNaught, Lani Dryden and AJ Borja have all started 18 or more games and are hitting above .300 on the season. 
In the circle, Katelyn Westover, Makenna Majors and Taylor Palmer have all pitched more than 30.0 innings this season.

SERIES HISTORY
Emporia State leads the series with the Jets 25-5 and swept their previous doubleheader in 2025. The Hornets have also won eight of the last ten in the series against Newman.

IN THE DUGOUT
Megan Hill is in her first season as the head coach for Emporia State and has started 17-8 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.
Brittany Henning is in her first season with the Jets and has 4-16 record.

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 1.18 ERA in 71.0 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 1.18 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 16 appearances have come in relief and she has a 3.26 across 34.1 innings. Sloan has three saves and a 1-1 record this season and has allowed just 36 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 17 games with 12 starts at both DP and catcher. Ramos has a .350 OBP in 39 plate appearances with seven runs scored and four RBI, including a season-high two in the second game against Northeastern State (3/14).
Addison Callaway (Fr./Leavenworth, Kan.) has come on strong of late, as she enters spring break with a hit in 12 of her last 13 games, including four games with multiple hits. 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. Callaway is batting .370 on the season after a pair of 2-4 games against Drury in the midweek.

AROUND THE HORN
Avery Brewer (Jr./Jenks, Okla.) has started 23 games and is hitting .348 with five home runs and 19 RBI this season. Brewer homered in the season opener against Lewis (1/30) and has reached base in 19 of 23 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 13 starts, including each of the last games. She is hitting .368 with three home runs, including a three-run home run against the Vikings (3/8). Smith has ten RBI and nine runs scored this season.
Sydney Wagner (So./Buda, Texas) has started all 25 games and holds a .308 average at the top of the order. Wagner has scored 18 runs, drawn ten walks and is reaching base at a .386 clip. Wagner matched her career-high with three RBI in game two against Drury in the midweek.
Brooke Flewelling (Jr./Holton, Kan.) has been a standout in the Hornet order, batting .372 with a 1.227 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 seven marks in the MIAA 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. 

OUT IN THE FIELD
Elina Bartlett (Jr./Cheney, Kan.) has made 19 starts in her first season with the Hornets and has a .397 OBP while driving in 11 runs and scoring ten 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 20-20 so far in 2026. Burkhardt is batting .354 and is second on the Hornets with 19 runs scored. She has eight multi-hit games, including three in the last five games with three hits. Burkhardt also has two games this season with three stolen bases.
Kinsey Perine (So./Rossville, Kan.) is hitting .283 with a .328 OBP this season while starting 21 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).