MONTGOMERY, Ala. --- The Mississippi College softball team opened Gulf South Conference play with a 13-4 loss on Saturday to Auburn Montgomery in the GSC Opening Weekend Festival, held at Lagoon Park.

The Lady Choctaws dropped to 3-4 on the season, while the Warhawks improved to 4-1.
 

---

HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Warhakws got things going in the first inning with three runs, highlighted by an RBI triple from Amy Persinger.
- AUM would tack on another couple runs in the second to take a 5-0 lead early on.
- The Lady Choctaws would get on the board in the second frame as junior Brianna Caldwell led off with a double and scored on a triple by sophomore Carly Crawford.
- Sophomore Haley Muller would pinch-run for Crawford after an apparent injury and score when junior Shelby Miller was caught stealing, drawing a throw to bring the run home.
- With the AUM lead cut down to 5-2, they would add another run in the third inning to make the score 6-2.
- MC again responded in their half of the third as junior Kristen Qualls doubled to right-center field, driving in freshman Kayla Murphy.
- Qualls would come in to score on a single up the middle by Caldwell and the score was 6-4 after three innings.
- The fourth inning the Warhawks break the game open with five runs, two of which came on a controversial call down the left-field line on a ball that appeared to be clearly foul but was called fair.
- AUM would add two more runs in the fifth to give the game its final score of 13-4.
 

---

KEY STATS
- Caldwell, Miller and freshman Jessica Aron each tallied multiple hits in the game, while Aron stole her fourth base of the season.
- Senior Kristen Gardner (0-2) took the loss for MC, giving up five earned runs over 1.1 innings.
- Hannah Dailey led the AUM offensive attack with three hits and three RBI.
- Natalie Johnsey (1-0) came out the bullpen and pitched 3.0 innings to get the victory.
 

---

NEXT UP
- The Lady Choctaws will be back in action on Sunday for two games, opening at noon against Valdosta State and finishing things up at 2:30 p.m. against Montevallo.
 

---

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.