May 7, 2026 –
Colby Deaver struck out 16 batters on his way to a complete game, propelling Emporia State baseball to a 4-2 win over Missouri Southern in the MIAA Quarterfinals on Thursday night in Edmond.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Emporia State had first crack at the plate and got a single by
Frankie Santiago and a walk by
Noah Steele with two in the first, but both were left on the bases.
Colby Deaver, making his 15th start of the season, retired the Lions in order with a pair of strikeouts.
Both teams went scoreless in the second before the Hornets broke through in the top of the third. Again, with two outs, the Hornets put two runners on and both advanced to scoring position on a wild pitch.
Brady Unrein then delivered a two-run single through the left side to put Emporia State in front 2-0. Deaver continued his frenzy of strikeouts in the third, striking out two more to push his total to six through three frames.
Missouri Southern would finally break through with two runs of their own in the fourth, while Deaver struck out the side with the score knotted at 2-2 heading to the fifth.
Both teams went down in order in the fifth, and in the top of the sixth,
Nathon Cruz put the Hornets back in front, as he took the first pitch of the inning deep for a solo home run to make the score 3-2.
Deaver settled back in heading to the late innings, as he retired Missouri Southern in order from the fifth through the eighth to push his total on the night to 13 heading into the final frame. In the eighth, the Hornets doubled their advantage, as
Dylan Brisbois walked and later came around to score on a wild pitch to make the score 4-2.
Deaver returned to the mound in the ninth, and despite a leadoff single and a two-out walk, the sophomore struck out the side to seal the win and the complete game, as he totaled a career-high 16 strikeouts.
A LOOK AT THE STATS
Frankie Santiago and
Brady Unrein both had multi-hit games, with Unrein driving in a pair of runs with a single in the third.
Nathon Cruz went 1-2 with a home run and a walk.
Colby Deaver pitched a complete game with 16 strikeouts, setting a new career-high and surpassing 100 on the season. The outing marks his second complete game of the season and second with double-digit strikeouts.
UP NEXT
Emporia State will take on #7 Missouri Western at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, May 8 in the MIAA Semifinals.
NOTES
Deaver's 16 strikeouts are the most since Tyler Applehans struck out 17 against Truman State on April 11, 2009.
Deaver's 102 strikeouts on the season are tied for the ninth-most in program history, matching Tyler Stubblefield's total from 2016.
