It was a busy weekend for the Hornets and Lady Hornets this weekend across the central time zone in several sports.
In cross country, the season came to an end at the NCAA Division II Central Regional championships on Saturday. The Lady Hornet runners finished 26th while the men were 27th. Dylan Hunter was the top finisher for the men in 101st place while Mason Bina led the women running in 111th place.
The Lady Hornet volleyball team couldn’t contain #5 Nebraska-Kearney Saturday night at White Auditorium. The Lopers turned a two-point lead in the first set into a 9-1 run to end the frame and ESU never threatened again in a 25-15, 25-16, 25-12 loss on Senior Day for E-State. Emporia State couldn’t get their offense on track while UNK hit over .400 in two sets as the Lady Hornets were outhit .353-.097. No ESU player had double-digit kills in the match. ESU (16-8, 8-6 MIAA) will wrap up the regular season with a road trip beginning Friday at Arkansas-Fort Smith.
The Lady Hornet basketball team overcame a 14-point deficit to pick up their first win of the season 64-62 over Sioux Falls on Saturday at the St. Joseph Civic Arena. The Cougars had three shots in the final 15 seconds to tie or take the lead but couldn’t connect as ESU held on. Freshman Elizabeth Tjaden led all scorers with 14 points while another freshman Jayla Cornelius added 12. E-State (1-1) returns to action in their home opener Wednesday hosting Wayne State College. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. with coverage beginning at 6:30 p.m. on 1400 AM/96.9 FM KVOE.
The ESU Disc Golf teams hosted the Mid-American Regional Championship presented by Dynamic Discs over the weekend at courses across Emporia. ESU swept the Mixed Amateur 1 championship going 1-2 with the gold team of Justin Farrell, T. J. Reel, Cade Kohlmeier, and Micah Tatro shooting -29 for a seven stroke win over the Hornets’ black team of Isaiah Esquivel, Caden Stucky, Grant Yoder, and Joshua Sterner. Emporia State’s women also finished in the top two spots in the Women’s Amateur 1 tournament with the gold team of Atlanta Krueger and Madeline Joiner shooting a -1 to finish 19 strokes ahead of the Lady Hornets’ black team of Maya Ringgold and Rebeka Thompson. ESU plays next on November 23 at the Newton Conference Open to wrap up their fall season.
Finally, the Emporia State men’s basketball team built a 10-point halftime lead and held on for a 83-69 victory over Northern State to wrap up the weekend at the Hillyard Tip-off Classic at the MWSU Fieldhouse in St. Joseph, Mo. on Sunday. Four Hornets scored in double figures led by Dallas Bear with 18 points off the bench. Malik Edwards Jr. scored 16 while Parker Day added 12 points and 10 rebounds. Arhman Lewis had six points and six rebounds with eight assists and zero turnovers. The Hornets (1-1) are back on the road Wednesday at Truman State. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. with pregame coverage at 5:30 p.m. on Mix 104.9 and the Hornet Sports Network.
