Emporia State Lady Hornets basketball

Overview

The Emporia State Lady Hornets team annually plays a nineteen-game conference schedule that is preceded by an out-of-conference schedule that includes one exhibition game between the Kansas Jayhawks or the Kansas State Wildcats, switching every other year. The conference schedule consists of playing every MIAA member at least once, some twice. Emporia State does, however, play the Washburn Ichabods in the rivalry known as the Turnpike Tussle and the Pittsburg State Gorillas twice a year.

History

Emporia State's women's basketball program was founded in 1974, one-hundred and eleven years after the university was founded. Since 1974, the Lady Hornets have belonged to three conferences. When the school was an National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, they participated in the Great Plains Athletic Conference until 1976, Central States Intercollegiate Conference from 1976 to 1989, back to the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference from 1989 to 1991, and when the university was recognized as an NCAA Division II school in 1991, they joined the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA).

Linda Caruthers era: 1974–1976

Linda Caruthers was the first coach, earning a 30–12 record over two seasons from 1974 to 1976. The inaugural game was a 73–52 win against the Washburn Lady Blues, a future-MIAA rival from Topeka, Kansas. ESU would then go on to lose their next game, and first loss of the program, to Fort Hays State – 61–80. For the next five seasons, Debbie Jones took over the helm of the program.

Debbie Jones era: 1976–1981

During Jones' first year, the Lady Hornets went 10–10, but then improved to a 15–8 record the following year. For the next three seasons, the Lady Hornets had a combined record of 64–24, leaving Jones with an 89–43 record. While Jones was the head coach, Emporia State won three conference championships.

Val Schierling era: 1981–1995

When Jones left after the 1980–81 season, Val Schierling took over as head coach for the Lady Hornets until 1995. In his first season, Schierling led the Lady Hornets to a 17–10 record, winning the CSIC regular season championship. For the next three seasons, the Lady Hornets had successful seasons, going 49–35. In the 1985–1986 season, the Lady Hornets went 15–15 and the next season went 11–15, making it the first losing season since the program started.

After the 1986–87 season, the Lady Hornets had only three winning seasons from 1987–88 and again from 1989–1991. From 1991 to 95, Schierling had a combined record of 45–64. After three consecutive losing seasons, Schierling was fired after the 1914–1995 season. Schierling is the second all-time winningest coach in Emporia State History with a record of 212–182 (.538).

Cindy Stein era: 1995–1998

After the firing of Val Schierling, Cindy Stein took the position as head coach of the Lady Hornets. While Stein only coached for three years at ESU, she turned the program around. In her first season, she went 12–14, quickly turning it around to 20–10 the following season, its first winning season since 1991. In her third and final season at Emporia State, Stein led the Lady Hornets to its first MIAA regular season and tournament championships, as well as the program's first trip to the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship. Stein left to become the head coach of the Missouri Tigers, leaving Emporia State with a 65–25 record.

Brandon Schneider era: 1998–2010

After being an assistant coach for three years, Schneider was promoted to head coach after head coach Cindy Stein left for the University of Missouri. In Schneider's 12 years at the helm, he became the winningest coach in Emporia State history with a record of 306–72. With that record, Schneider lead the Lady Hornets to MIAA regular season titles, three MIAA tournaments, four Regional titles and the school’s first-ever Division II National Championship in any sport. Schneider lead the Lady Hornets to 12 NCAA Tournaments, seven MIAA Regular Season Championships, four MIAA Tournament Championships, four NCAA II South Central Regional Championships, and two NCAA II Final Four Appearances.

In Schneider's first three seasons, he compiled a record of 86–9 overall, and 48–4 in conference play. In those three seasons, Schneider lead the Lady Hornets to three consecutive regular season and conference tournament championships, and to the NCAA Sweet 16 all three years, the Elite 8 All three years, and the Final Four one year. The 2001–02 season was Schneider's only season with less than 20 wins, and not making the post season.

Following his lowest record, Schneider quickly turned the team around. From 2002 to 2006, Schneider lead the Lady Hornets to 20 plus win seasons, and a trip to either the NCAA Sweet 16 or the NCAA Elite Eight. In 2003–04, Schneider led the team to its 5th conference regular season championship since joining the MIAA in 1991, and Schneider's third conference championship. In both the 2002–03 and 2003–04 seasons, Schneider led the team to the NCAA Regionals. Between 2004 and 2009, the Lady Hornets had a combined record of 125–46 overall, 72–25 in conference play, won two conference championships in 2007 and 2008, and advance to the NCAA Tournament each of those years.

In the 2009–10 season, Schneider's final season, the Lady Hornets went on to win a 30–5 season, 16–4 in conference play, and on to win the 2010 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship. The Lady Hornets finished second in the MIAA regular season and Tournament, and won the NCAA South Central Regional. In the first game of the Elite Eight, Emporia defeated the Michigan Tech Huskies 62–50. In the Final Four, the Lady Hornets struggled to beat Gannon University, but defeated them 97–94. The Championship game was kept close, with the final score 65–53. Schneider left for Stephen F. Austin, leaving Emporia State with a record of 306–72 (.810), becoming the winningest coach in ESU history.

Schneider coached six NCAA Division II All-Americans, and two national players of the year in his twelve years as at Emporia State. Schneider was also the first rookie head coach in the history of the MIAA to win both the regular season and tournament titles.

Jory Collins era: 2010–present

Jory Collins, who was assistant coach for seven years under Schneider, became head coach in April 2010. In his seven seasons at helm of the Lady Hornets program, Collins has gone on to win five consecutive MIAA Conference tournaments (2013–2017) and has combined a record of 180–46 overall and an 112–36 record in the MIAA. He is the first coach in Emporia State history to advance to seven conference tournament championships and five regional championships in six years.

In his first season, Collins led the Lady Hornets to a 20–9 overall, and 15–7 conference winning season. He led them to the MIAA Tournament title game, which they lost to the Northwest Missouri Bearcats.

Collins led the Lady Hornets to a 23–9 overall, and 14–6 conference winning season in the 2011–12 season. With that, the Lady Hornets advanced to their second consecutive MIAA Tournament title game, in which they lost. They also advanced on to the NCAA Sweet 16 where they lost to the Pittsburg State Gorillas.

In 2012–13, the Lady Hornets were preseason ranked 19 in the WBCA poll. During the 2012–13 season, Collins lead the Lady Hornets went on to an overall record of 23–9, and 13–5 conference winning season. The Lady Hornets went on to their third consecutive MIAA tournament title game, in which they won against the University of Central Missouri Jennies 67–51. This was their fifth tournament win, and first since the tournament moved to Kansas City, Missouri in 2003. They again made it to the NCAA Sweet 16, where they lost to the Augustana Vikings 75–74.

In 2013–14, the Lady Hornets were preseason ranked 9 in the Women's Division II Bulletin Preseason Top 10 Rankings poll. During the 2013–14 season, Collins lead the Lady Hornets went on to an overall record of 30–4, and 16–3 conference winning season. For the fourth consecutive season, Collins coached the Lady Hornets to their fourth MIAA tournament title game, in which they won against the Central Missouri Jennies. The Lady Hornets went to the NCAA Regionals, in which they lost to the Concordia–St. Paul Golden Bears 70–67. At the end of the season in March 2014, Collins was selected as the NCAA Division II Region 7 Russell Athletic/WBCA Coach of the Year.

In 2014–15 season, the Lady Hornets were preseason ranked 7th in the Women's Division II Bulletin Preseason Top 10 Rankings poll. During the 2014–15 season, Collins lead the Lady Hornets to an overall record of 29–5, and 15–4 conference winning season. For the fifth consecutive season, Collins coached the Lady Hornets to their fifth MIAA tournament title game, in which they won their third-straight against the Fort Hays State Tigers 49–46. The Lady Hornets went to the NCAA Regionals, in which they again beat Fort Hays State in the Finals to advance to the Elite Eight. Collins then led the team to the Final Four, where they lost to the California Vulcans. In post-season honors, Collins won the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association "Coach of the Year".

Home arena

Since 1974, home basketball games have been played at William L. White Auditorium, a 5,000-seat arena named after William Lindsay White, son of William Allen White. The auditorium is also home to the men's basketball team and the Lady Hornets volleyball team since the program started in 1973. In 2008, White Auditorium received an upgrade with a new scoreboard and video board, as well as a new color scheme on the arena floor and the throughout the entire building.

School colors

Emporia State's official school colors are black and gold. They have been the colors since the school was founded in 1863, and until recently, the gold was Old gold.

Mascot

Corky the Hornet is Emporia State University's mascot. In 1923 when the Emporia State was named to the Kansas State Teachers College, the athletic teams were known as the "Yaps". Many people were not fond of the name, most notably Emporia State coach, Vic Trusler. Trusler suggested to Cecil Carle of the Emporia Gazette that the university's athletic teams should be called the "Yellow Jackets". However, the name changed to "Hornets" due to the lack of newspaper space.

In 1933, the Teachers College had a student contest where students and staff could design a mascot for the college. Sophomore Paul Edwards, who graduated in 1937, designed Corky. Although hundreds of drawings were submitted, Edwards' Corky, a "human-like" hornet was selected. Corky was published in The Bulletin, the student newspaper for Emporia State University.