The Emporia State baseball team picked up two run-rule victories at Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium on Saturday in Tucson, Ariz. The Hornets opened the day by blasting Minot State 21-5 for an eight-inning run-rule victory. The Beavers scored four in the bottom of the first to take the lead, but the Hornets got two back in the second. ESU tacked on four in the fourth to take the lead, highlighted by RBIs by Noah Steele and Evan Abbott. After trading runs in the fifth and sixth, the Hornets exploded for 14 runs in the eighth to turn a close game in to a massacre. The Hornets combined for 14 runs on 11 hits in the inning. After starter Nick Woodcock was knocked out of the game after facing nine batters in the first inning, Max Lialios (1-0) tossed the next 3.1 innings for the Hornets to pick up the win.
In their second game of the day, the Hornets used two big innings to sweep their two-game series with Adams State knocking off the Grizzlies 13-0. It was a seven-run fourth that put the Black & Gold in front for good, highlighted by a three-run Abbott homer. The Hornets torched the Grizzlies for five more runs in the fifth and one more in the sixth. Hornet starter Colby Deaver (1-0) rolled through the Adams State shutting out the Grizzlies in his five innings surrendering just one hit with eight strikeouts.
ESU (3-0) wraps up their Arizona trip on Sunday with one final game against Minot State. First pitch is set for 11:00 a.m.
