Emporia State was able to avoid the curse of the eight hole in Game One against Minnesota-Moorhead.
The Hornets weren’t so fortunate in the nightcap.
Samantha Sheeley worked around a home run from eight hitter Melissa Saylor in ESU’s 5-2 victory in Friday’s first game.
Brittany Norris couldn’t do the same in the nightcap, as Lacey Bunkelman’s two-run homer was the difference in MSU-Moorhead’s 2-1 win.
Bunkelman’s blast came once again from the eight spot in the order.
“That’s someone, as a pitcher, we can’t take lightly and we can’t take for granted,” ESU coach Kristi Bredbenner said of the eight-hole hitter.
Norris had pitched four scoreless innings before making one of her only mistakes.
After giving up a single to Melissa Saylor, Norris fell behind 2-0 to Bunkelman before throwing a hittable pitch over the center of the plate.
Bunkelman took advantage, knocking the ball well over the fence in left field.
“That’s definitely, in my opinion, a freshman mistake,” Bredbenner said. “I think Brittany needs to understand a little bit more that when you get behind, that doesn’t mean you have to throw the strike right down the middle. You have to still hit the spot you want.”
ESU’s bats were never able to make up the 2-0 deficit.
The Hornets scored one in the fifth on a bloop RBI single by Jenna Potter, but with runners on second and third and one out, a strikeout and groundout ended the rally.
The only other threat came in the seventh after a one-out double by Abby Smith.
Aubree Brattin and Potter both struck out to end the game.
“We always tell each other, ‘Don’t press, don’t press,’ but when it’s getting late in the game and you know you need a score, it gets hard not to,” Potter said. “I know that my last at-bat, I was pressing a little bit.”
Moorhead’s Julie Vancura allowed just four hits in seven innings, striking out five.
ESU now is just 1-3 in games when facing left-handed starters.
“We’ve got to be able to make an adjustment on the inside pitch,” Bredbenner said. “As right-handed batters, instead of (the pitch) going away from us, it’s coming into us. We’ve got to hit that ball early.”
In Game One, Sheeley recovered nicely after allowing her two-run homer in the second.
She struck out 15 batters, tying a career high, and MSU-Moorhead had just two baserunners in the final five innings.
“Those (home runs) are going to happen. The harder you bring it in, the harder it’s going to go out,” Sheeley said. “I didn’t let it affect me and kept throwing my game.”
The right-hander allowed just the two runs — both were unearned — in her complete-game performance. She allowed three hits and walked only one.
Sheeley now has struck out 29 combined batters in her last 14 innings.
Linda Ketter and Miranda Campbell added home runs for ESU.
The Hornets (20-12) were scheduled to play a single game against MSU-Moorhead this morning at 10.
Friday at Trusler
Game One
Emporia State 5, MSU-Moorhead 2
MSU-Moorhead 020 000 0 — 2 3 1
No. 19 ESU 003 101 X — 5 6 1
W — Sheeley. L — Sagehorn.
E — MSUM: West; ESU: Ketter. LOB — MSUM 3, ESU 7. HR — MSUM: Saylor; ESU: Campbell, Ketter. HBP — ESU: Hughes. SB — ESU: Wiard, Mahan, Hughes, Peters, Ma. Dennis, Potter.
Game Two
MSU-Moorhead 2, Emporia State 1
MSU-Moorhead 000 020 0 — 2 6 0
No. 19 ESU 000 010 0 — 1 4 0
W — Vancura. L — Norris.
LOB — MSUM 4, ESU 4. 2B — MSUM: Sagehorn; ESU: Mahan, Smith. HR — MSUM: Bunkelman. SH — MSUM: Sagehorn, Vancura; ESU: Brattin. SB — ESU: Potter. CS — MSUM: Howland.