Northeastern State Splits With Emporia State

The Northeastern State baseball team recorded a doubleheader split with Emporia State Tuesday afternoon at Thomas C. Rousey Field.

The Hornets (2-6, 1-4 MIAA) took the first game 7-5, and the RiverHawks (3-2, 3-2 MIAA) earned the 7-3 twilight victory.

Junior right fielder Cody Robinson and sophomore catcher David Weber both led NSU with .600 batting averages on the day. Robinson had a team-leading five runs batted in, while senior second baseman Chad Davidson and sophomore first baseman Preston Cash both scored three times.

ESU 7, NSU 5

Northeastern State jumped on top 4-0 after the first inning, but two three-run frames from the visitors allowed the Hornets to come from behind and take the opening game 7-5.

Senior center fielder Trent Wilkins and Davidson both scored on wild pitches to open the scoring in the bottom of the first, and Robinson doubled down the right field line to bring home Weber and Cash and make the score 4-0 in favor of the home team.

Emporia State manufactured a run in the second, and an RBI double from David Richards and a two-run home run from Todd Schultz in the fourth tied the game at 4-4.

Ashton McCoy doubled to right center in the top of the fifth to spark a second-straight three-run frame for the Hornets. He would later score on a sacrifice fly, Aaron Rea scored on a wild pitch and Richards also touched home.

Cash scored in the home half of the fifth, but neither team would find another run in the final two innings.

ESU outhit NSU 10-9, and Blake Sturgeon and Schultz led the visitors with two hits each. Schultz drove home three, and both Rea and Richards scored twice.

Andrew Polly (1-1) picked up the win after tossing the first 5.0 innings for Emporia State. He allowed five runs (four earned) on seven hits. Zach Gove picked up the save after throwing the final two frames.

Three RiverHawks had two hits, and Robinson had a team-leading two RBI. Cash scored twice.

Sophomore Dymin Morillo earned the starting nod and lasted 3.2 innings. He allowed four runs on five hits and picked up the no-decision. Sophomore Hayden Walch (0-2) took the loss after throwing 2.1 innings of relief work. He allowed three runs on five hits. Sophomores Brooks Deatherage and Seth Hudson combined to throw the final frame.

NSU 7, ESU 3

The RiverHawks again jumped on top early and this time held on for the 7-3 victory. NSU bookended three runs in the first and eighth innings, while adding an insurance tally in the third to earn the split.

Wilkins and Davidson opened the game with back-to-back singles. Senior shortstop Kegan Knight loaded the bases after being hit by a pitch, and junior left fielder Kyle Singleton drove home Wilkins and Davidson with a single through the right side. Knight later scored on an RBI groundout by Cash.

Davidson blasted a solo home run over the right field fence in the third inning, but Jordan Slade cut NSU's lead in half with a two-run shot in the top of the fourth.

The RiverHawks shutout the Hornets over the next four innings, and Robinson crushed a three-run homer over the left field wall in the bottom of the eighth to tack on three insurance runs.

Todd Reller, Eric Dawson, Skylar Angood, and McCoy all reached base in the ninth, but a harmless fly ball to right field by Rea ended the game after Dawson was the only one who could cross home.

NSU outhit the Hornets 11-8 and was led by Robinson's three RBI. Wilkins, Davidson and Cash all collected two hits.

Freshman Wilson Klutts earned the start on the mound for the RiverHawks, but he lasted just one inning. He never allowed a run, but he walked four Hornets.

Junior Addison Williams (1-0) relieved Klutts and earned the win after throwing the next 4.2 frames. He allowed two runs (one earned) on two hits. Freshman Andrew Walker and senior Frank Sprick tossed the next 1.2 innings, and Hudson threw the final 1.2 innings to earn the save.

Reller led Emporia State with two hits, and Slade had two RBI and a run scored.

Keith Picht (0-2) took the loss after allowing four runs on six hits in 6.0 innings. Brenton Higgins and Parker McDaniel threw the final 2.0 innings, and McDaniel gave up the three-run blast to Robinson in the eighth.

Northeastern State will now play host to Truman State this upcoming weekend. The RiverHawks and Bulldogs will lock up for a single game at 1 p.m. Feb. 22, followed by a noon doubleheader Feb. 23.

The games were originally scheduled to be played in Kirksville, Mo., but poor weather conditions have forced the change of venue.