The Emporia State coaches told Abe Steinbach to wait for a fastball against Central Oklahoma on Wednesday.
That was tough, considering Central Oklahoma starting pitcher Connor Farris rarely threw a fastball. In fact, Kenny Burkhead said he didn’t see one all day.
But Steinbach did, and he broke up Farris’ no-hitter in the sixth inning with a leadoff double. The Hornets mustered three runs in the sixth, and on a pitcher’s day at Trusler Sports Complex, that was enough to win 3-2.
“We’re happy to win, but we’ve got to play better if we want to be good at the end,” ESU coach Bob Fornelli said. “I’ve told them all along, just find a way to win, because the scoreboard doesn’t matter as long as you find a way to win, and that’s pretty much what they did today. That’s the only thing we did.”
Although the ESU offense had only three hits and left Fornelli disappointed, the pitching staff made sure the Hornets kept their eight-game winning streak going.
Cole Moore (2-0) pitched seven innings and gave up only one run in the fourth inning. Andrew Foshee’s double in the fourth drove in Casey Bruns and was the Bronchos’ only extra-base hit.
Moore had eight strikeouts, but he didn’t feel the need to overpower Central Oklahoma because of a strong wind that blew straight in from center field.
“It was a good day to be a pitcher,” Moore said.
The umpire also made it easy on the pitchers with a big strike zone that Moore used to his advantage.
“I got a couple courteous calls, a couple calls that I thought were balls,” Moore said. “He had a big zone, and that’s what you like.”
Moore started Emporia State’s midweek game for the second straight week, and he has won both starts. The ESU coaches told him he would be a reliever in the offseason, but he has found a niche as the midweek starter, a role he said he’s more comfortable in because he’s always been a starter.
“Cole did awesome, second straight great outing for him,” Fornelli said. “We’ve always said that he has it, and he’s definitely proven that. Every midweek game, he’s going to get that, and if somebody falters on the weekend, he’s going to be able to run out there, but that’s a pretty good midweek guy for us, and hopefully he can continue.”
Freshman pitcher Dominic King relieved Moore in the eighth inning and nearly blew the Hornets’ two-run lead. After getting the leadoff batter to ground out, King gave up a single and walked the third batter, and an infield single by Luke Yost loaded the bases. After forcing Brent Hodge into a fielder’s choice groundout, Fornelli went to Diego Soto.
Soto struck out Bruns to end the inning and keep Emporia State ahead.
“He always wants the ball, and he got an opportunity to get the ball in a crucial situation and does a great job,” Fornelli said.
The Hornets loaded the bases to start the ninth inning, and Burkhead, ESU’s third hitter in the lineup, had a chance to add to the lead with no outs. He popped up, and with one out, Kevin Wempe bunted into a double play to end the inning.
“That will definitely hurt you in the long run,” Fornelli said.
Luckily for the Hornets, they needed just three more outs, and Soto has been a good bet in save situations this year. He worked a scoreless ninth to pick up his team-leading fourth save.
Emporia State’s three hits were a season-low total. Like the Bronchos, the Hornets also had only one extra-base hit, Steinbach’s leadoff double in the sixth.
“I got a fastball away, and I just went with it,” Steinbach said. “I took a few pitches and got deep in the count. The at-bat before, I got myself out by swinging at a bad pitch.”
Steinbach scored Emporia State’s first run after Farris (0-1) walked Jeremy Francis with the bases loaded. Burkhead beat out a double play to put Emporia State ahead, and an error by Farris led to Emporia State’s third and final run, which proved to be enough.
“I think it tells you how good our pitching staff is,” Steinbach said. “Our pitching staff is phenomenal. They work their tails off and they do a good job... and they keep us in games when we shouldn’t be in them. They gave us a shot, and we won it.”
Wednesday at Trusler Sports Complex
Central Okla. 000 100 010 — 2 8 3
Emporia State 000 006 00X — 3 3 0
W — Moore. L — Farris. Sv — Soto.
E — UCO: Yost, Gordy, Farris. DP — UCO 4. LOB — UCO 7, ESU 4. 2B — UCO: Foshee; ESU: Steinbach. HBP — ESU: Crumbliss. SH — UCO: Sheets. SB — UCO: Schoonover, Yost, Hodge. CS — UCO: Yost.