WICHITA, Kan. – Heading into head coach Suzanne Unruh's seventh season at the helm, the one word that describes the Friends University Falcons during that stretch is consistency. Excluding the canceled COVID season in 2020, the Falcons have finished no lower than third in the KCAC during every season of Unruh's tenure and have won two KCAC tournament championships (2019 & 2022) and earned three NAIA National Championship tournament appearances.
"Having a large senior class this year has been amazing," said Unruh. "Each of the seven seniors have their own unique leadership skills as well as the passion you must have for this spring season. It's contagious for sure and we have a lot of trust in my senior leaders as well as the other upper classmen stepping up this year to fill spots that are needed for this year. When starting our fall seasons, it's just as important for me to spend time with the team off the field to build that bond and trust in each other than being on the field improving our skills. I feel that in addition to spending that time together learning our strengths and weaknesses, it's also a chance for my players to understand just how important their role is to the program and how crucial it is to our success!"
The Falcons' All-KCAC returning foursome features first baseman Becca Dunn, who also earned both NAIA and NFCA All-America honors and a first-team All-KCAC nod after an offensive breakout during her junior season. Dunn batted a KCAC-leading .500 last year while ranking fifth in the league in RBIs (44) along with eight home runs and team-highs in on-base-percentage (.519) and slugging percentage (.775).
Providing the Falcons with a powerful hitting combo is proven slugger and fellow first-team All-KCAC performer Priscilla Mora. A native of Beaumont, Calif., Mora finished tied for fourth in the KCAC with a team-high 11 homers and was second on the team in both RBIs (42) and slugging percentage (.688) along with a stout .369 batting average.
"It's been great watching Becca work hard this past fall to regain her strength and be fully released from an unfortunate ACL tear in 2024," said Unruh. "But her A-game hasn't missed a beat. She is ready and Priscilla will be as well. Those two will be a tough out for teams for sure. Being a senior in the conference, teams know you very well and what to throw you, so these two have worked diligently on their weaknesses and are ready for anything to come their way."
Jayden Estabrook and Elena Montoya are two more starters returning for the Falcons that have valuable experience in the everyday lineup. Alex Vick and Izzy Jones could also be intriguing lineup options this season for the Falcons after dealing with injuries in 2024.
"Jayden will be a gold glove contender at second base and Elena is a great communicator and has a strong arm while having trust and confidence from our pitchers and her teammates behind the plate," said Unruh. I'm also looking forward to the return of Alex at third base and Izzy in center field. They would have been big contributors last season, but both suffered season ending injuries that kept them out for most if not all the season. Seeing them both back on the field this year will be great. We still have some moving parts to figure out in right field and shortstop, but we have a lot of depth and great players to give opportunities to for those positions."
Returning to anchor the pitching staff in 2025 is Riley Wertz following a spectacular first season on campus. A true front-line starting pitcher, Wertz received first-team All-KCAC honors and was named the league's top newcomer after finishing tied for second in the conference with 16 wins while ranking second in the league in strikeouts (154) and third in ERA (1.58). With all that production, her finest performance last year arguably came in a loss when the Wichita native and Hutchinson CC transfer pitched into the 12th inning in the KCAC tournament championship game against top-seeded Evangel University and gave up just one unearned tally with seven strikeouts.
Another pitching option returning is Kierstan Weitze. A native of Spring Hill, Kan., Weitze was a third-team All-KCAC recipient after a solid season that provided 53 innings pitched across 18 appearances with a 2.11 ERA and a stifling .219 opposing batting average. Jenna Ormiston also returns for her second season and should push for innings in 2025.
"Riley has been hungry to get back to the spring season since we all got back together in August," said Unruh. "She is the most determined and fierce pitcher I have coached in a long time! Kierstan throws a lot different from Riley, which will be huge. Kierstan spins the ball a lot and has a changeup that will catch hitters coming out of their cleats. Both have a lot of college experience on the mound. Jenna will also get innings on varsity as well. Like Kierstan, Jenna throws with a lot of down spin and off speed, so she is a very productive pitcher that should get us a lot of ground ball outs."
In addition to the veteran core returning for the Falcons, Unruh has added some interesting newcomers to the fold for 2025 that could make an immediate impact.
"Tamara Lozoya is a transfer from Hutchinson CC and can play middle infield as well as the outfield, so she has been a great addition to our team as well as our team culture," said Unruh. "Freshmen Cadence Magana and Teagan Moreno both came in this year with great bats and have a lot of potential for some varsity time. Both are very smart on the field and have outstanding swings that can produce a lot of action in our lineup when they get the opportunity."
The Falcons, coming off a 34-19 season and a third-place conference finish that netted the program it's third NAIA Opening Round appearance in the last six seasons, open the season tomorrow (Feb. 5) at NCAA D-II-member Southern Nazarene University in Bethany, Okla.
The 2025 home opener is set for Feb. 16 vs. Hastings College, while the KCAC season also begins at home on Mar. 11 vs. Ottawa University at Two Rivers Youth Complex. The non-conference slate is set to feature No. 1 Our Lady of the Lake University, No. 15-ranked Midland University and (RV) Missouri Baptist University.
"We've been indoors since we've gotten back from winter break!" said Unruh "Getting a little stir crazy here and there but with that, I believe our bats will be ready to go. We're getting a lot of reps and live hitting. We may not see our dirt infield for a week, for defense's sake, but I do feel that we are ahead of schedule with our offense as well as pitching.
Overall, we have a lot of experienced players, a lot more speed in the lineup and tremendous excitement to work through a tough non-conference schedule in hopes to be ready to open KCAC play at home against Ottawa. We will need everyone ready at all times to take advantage of these opportunities and make us a stronger team in the end!"
