CLINTON, Miss. --- The Mississippi College softball team played their first home games of the season on Saturday, splitting a doubleheader with Shorter University at the MC Softball Complex.

The Hawks (13-7, 5-3 GSC) outlasted the Lady Choctaws (10-9, 4-4 GSC) in 11 innings in the first contest, winning 3-2. The second game saw MC bounce back with a 3-1 victory behind a strong pitching performance from sophomore Adrianna Morgan.
 

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GAME ONE: Shorter 3, MC 2 (11 Innings)

HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Hawks jumped on the board in the first inning as they loaded the bases with no outs, but sophomore Penny Nichols gave up just one run on a sacrifice fly double play that scored Tiffany Holland.
- The game would remain 1-0 until the fifth inning when sophomore Katherine Lee drove in pinch-runner Shayla McKissock with a bunt single.
- The score would stay 1-1 until the 10th inning when international tie-breakers began being used, placing a runner at second base to open the inning.
- The Hawks scored on a squeeze bunt in their half of the 10th, but pinch-hitter Shelby Miller's infield RBI single with two outs scored senior Haley Thompson to keep the game going.
- Shorter scored again in the 11th on a sacrifice fly, and MC's longest game since 2012 came to an end as they stranded the tying run at third base.

KEY STATS
- Both teams had several opportunities to push runs across in the low-scoring contest, combining to leave 26 runners on base (Shorter-15, MC-11).
- Freshman Carly Crawford and Lee each had two hits for MC, while Lee extended her hitting streak to 15 games in the contest.
- Eight different Hawks posted hits, while Holland scored two runs on the night.
- Nichols (5-4) took the tough-luck loss for MC, giving up just one earned run over 11.0 innings pitched. She pitched around eight hits and six walks.
- Payton Lippert (4-3) got the win for Shorter, striking out six and giving up just two runs over 11.0 innings.
 

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GAME TWO: MC 3, Shorter 1

HOW IT HAPPENED
- After both teams went scoreless over the first three innings, the Lady Choctaws pushed across two runs in the fourth with the first coming on a Shorter error during a run-down that allowed Lee to scamper home.
- Crawford singled home senior Tylan Buckley with a single to left field, taking a 2-0 advantage through four frames.
- The Hawks got a run back in the sixth as Dani Lukas came home to score on an MC error, cutting the lead to 2-1.
- Crawford again came through in the sixth inning with a two-out RBI double to score Buckley, who led off the inning with a single.
- Buckley reached third after stealing second and moving up on a single by pinch-hitter Molli Douglass.
- Morgan (2-2) retired the Hawks in order in the seventh to even up the series and force a rubber match on Sunday.

KEY STATS
- Morgan gave up just three hits and one unearned run, striking out two over the complete-game effort. The University of Memphis transfer retired nine straight in the dominant effort.
- Buckley and Crawford were the offensive stars with two hits apiece. Buckley scored two runs, while Crawford drove in two.
- Lee extended her hitting streak to 16 games with base-hits in both ends of the doubleheader.
- Holland had two of Shorter's three hits, while Maddie Hunt picked up the other.
- Hannah Draper (4-4) took the loss for Shorter, giving up seven hits and two earned runs over 6.0 innings.
 

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NEXT UP
- The teams will wrap up the three-game series on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. at the MC Softball Complex.
 

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Mississippi College is a private Christian university located in Clinton, Mississippi with an enrollment of over 5,000 students. MC is recently finished their transition process back to NCAA Division II and the Gulf South Conference and will be competing for conference and national championships in the 2016-17 academic year.
 
The athletic department sponsors 17 intercollegiate athletic programs: Baseball, Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Football, Golf, Men's and Women's Soccer, Softball, Men's and Women's Tennis, Men's and Women's Indoor Track & Field, Men's and Women's Outdoor Track & Field and Volleyball.
 
For more information on Mississippi College athletics, please contact David Nichols at 601-925-3234 or nichols@mc.edu.