TAHLEQUAH – The Northeastern State baseball team stretched their win streak to three games Thursday afternoon, beating Emporia State 2-1 in their MIAA opener at Thomas C. Rousey Field. This was NSU's seventh consecutive win over the Hornets.

Blake Freeman went 2-for-4 on the afternoon with two hits, an RBI, and a stolen base. Seth Stacey got the start for the RiverHawks, throwing 6.2 innings, allowing one earned run on four hits with eight strikeouts to pick up the win. Cole White picked up the save, throwing the final 1.2 innings.

A double steal in the top of the first gave ESU an early 1-0 lead, one which they would maintain until the bottom of the fifth, when Freeman singled up the middle, scoring Colby Tweten tying the game at one. Freeman would steal second to put runners on second and third, but the RiverHawks would fail to score the go-ahead run.

NSU would take the lead in the sixth, scoring one run, coming on an RBI double by Isaiah Keller, allowing C.D. White to score, putting the RiverHawks in front 2-1. The inning would come to a crashing end, though, on a line drive double play, followed by a strikeout.

The Hornets would load the bases in the bottom of the seventh, but Logan Stewart came on in relief and slammed the door shut. Emporia State would go on to leave six men on base over the final innings, including the ninth, where they got the game-tying run to third base before White induced a flyball to center field to end the game.

The RiverHawks and Hornets will continue their three-game series Friday at Thomas C. Rousey Field, with first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m.