Softball clinches MIAA title

Chris Hunter / The Bulletin

Freshman second baseman Angela Mahan looks to throw out an Ichabod during the Turnpike Tussle Sunday. The Hornets swept Washburn and clinched its fourth straight MIAA title.

The Emporia State Hornets had another busy weekend of competition, playing a pair of MIAA opponents in double headers and clinching the conference championship in the process. On Saturday the Hornets traveled to Pittsburg to play against the Gorillas, who are floating in the middle of the conference standings. After splitting those games, the Hornets returned home for a series with rival Washburn on Sunday.

The matinee match up with the Gorillas began at noon in Pittsburg, and the Hornets scored all the runs they would need in the first two innings of play. The Hornets scored one in the first and two in the second to bring the score to 3-0. With senior Sam Sheeley on the mound, the sailing was smooth for Emporia. In another complete game outing, Sheeley struck out 10 Gorillas and gave up five hits. The Gorillas managed to score a run on the Hornets in the fourth inning, and the game ended with a 3-1 score.

The second game against the Gorillas didn’t go as smoothly for ESU. Although they crossed the plate first, the Hornets couldn’t stop the Gorillas from scoring a pair of runs in the later innings. Combined, the Hornets could only manage four runs in the game. ESU left five runners on base throughout the game and couldn’t seem to get the bats in sync with the pitches. The Hornets fell to the Gorillas 2-1 in the second game of the double header.

On Sunday, the Hornets returned for a rescheduled rain-out series with the Washburn Ichabods. ESU needed a single win out of the two games in order to clinch the conference title. What they got was a sweep of their Turnpike Tussle rivals, 4-2, 11-3. The championship is the Hornet’s fourth consecutive regular-season championship.

The first game against the 27-22 Ichabods started with strong play for the Hornets. In the first two innings the Hornets scored four runs. Sheeley pitched the entire game, and allowed just two runs, both in the third inning. The 4-2 victory gave Sheeley her 20th win of the season.

Hornets head coach Kristi Bredbenner commented on what this year’s championship means to her program and how her team plans on furthering their year.

“Every year’s a different year. There are different players, faces, everything. We’ve come a long way; people were questioning if we were going to be able to win it again this year,” Bredbenner said. “But we’ve still got work to do. We’ve got to take it one game at a time and be prepared for any team that shows up on Thursday at the MIAA tournament.”

The conference champion Hornets took the field again to face the Ichabods once more. The Hornets scored six runs in the second inning and four in the fourth to score in bunches. Senior Jennifer Dace and sophomore Miranda Campbell both belted home runs to lead the Hornets to 13 hits in six innings as the Hornets run-ruled the Ichabods 11-3.

Hornet senior short stop April Huddleston agreed with her coach that they needed to take the upcoming weeks one day at a time, and added a few thoughts on the fourth consecutive championship.

“It’s a great tradition here at Emporia State. We’ve won in the past with some great players, and to continue after they’re gone means a lot,” Huddleston said.

The Hornets will conclude their regular season with a double header against Newman University on Tuesday in Wichita. The MIAA tournament will be held on Thursday and Friday in Shawnee, Ks. where the Hornets will be the number one seed. Emporia State’s first game is scheduled for noon on Thursday.