PITTSBURG -- The Pittsburg State University baseball team remained unbeaten on the season and opened MIAA play in style with a doubleheader sweep of Emporia State University Sunday (Feb. 23). The Gorillas down the Hornets, 15-1 and 7-3, at Al Ortolani Field.

Pitt State improved to 9-0 on the season (2-0 MIAA) with the victories, while ESU slipped to 4-5 overall and 0-2 in MIAA play. The two squads will wrap up the three-game series with a 1 p.m. (CST) game Monday (Feb. 24).

Maddox Thornton improved to 3-0 on the season with a quality start on the mound in game one. Thornton limited the Hornets to one run over 5.0 innings of work. He scattered foru hits and issued one walk while fanning eight batters. Braxton Haywood and Cooper Crouch each tossed scoreless innings behind Thornton in the seven-inning run-rule victory.

Offensively, Austin Warkins broke out the lumber with a 3-for-4 game with a double and a pair of home runs. She smacked a three-run homer in the third inning and followed it up with a solo blast in the fourth. He scored three times and drove in four runs. Dagen Brewer also doubled, homered and drove in three runs, and ESU transfer Kadyn Williams went 2-for-3 with a double, a solo home run and three runs scored.

In the nightcap, Kolby Dougan (3-0) remained unbeaten in three starts. After earning NCAA Division II National Pitcher of the Week honors following his last start on Feb. 8, he limited ESU to two hits in 6.0 innings pitched. He issued no walks and fanned 11 Hornets batters. For the season, he has a 0.50 ERA and 39 strikeouts in 18 innings of work while allowing just five hits and three walks to date.

Rickey Sanchez homered and drove in a pair of runs to help spark Pitt State's 12-hit attack. Williams, Drew Bugner, Connor Allen and Josh Holmes each had two hits in the contest. Allen drove in a pair of runs and Allen tripled and scored twice.

Boston Dowd and Ryan Leiker pitched a combined 3.0 innings of relief behind Dougan.