HUNTSVILLE, Miss. --- The Mississippi College softball team opened the Charger Chillout 2.0 with a 9-6 win over #14 Missouri-St. Louis, followed by a 10-2 loss to Bellarmine on Thursday afternoon at the Huntsville Metro-Kiwanis Sportsplex.
 

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MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE 9, #14 MISSOURI-ST. LOUIS 6

HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Lady Choctaws got the scoring going in the second inning when sophomore Carly Crawford homered to left-center, sparking a four-run frame.
- Junior Alexia Harmon and senior Katherine Lee also had RBI doubles in the frame to give MC an early 4-0 advantage.
- Junior Brianna Caldwell led off the third inning with her first home run of the season, clearing the left-center field wall.
- A sacrifice fly by junior Makenzie Nieto scored junior Haley Muller and gave the Lady Choctaws a 6-0 lead after their half of the third inning.
- The nationally-ranked Trtions (0-1) got back into the game in their half of the third, putting up three runs on three hits to cut the MC lead in half at 6-3.
- They would eventually make the score 6-4 after five innings on a sacrifice fly.
- The Lady Choctaws responded in the sixth inning with three runs, starting with an RBI single by Lee to score sophomore Shayla McKissock.
- MC pushed the lead out to 9-4 when a UMSL error allowed two more runs to score.
- The Tritons would put up two runs in the seventh and bring the game-tying run to the plate, but MC would hold off the late charge to grab the 9-6 win.

KEY STATS
- Every starter for MC had at least one hit, led by four Lady Choctaws with multiple base-knocks (Lee, Kayla Murphy, Harmon and McKissock).
- Lee led the team with two RBI and two runs scored.
- Junior Adrianna Morgan (2-0) went five innings in the circle and allowed five hits and four earned runs.
- Junior Penny Nichols tossed the final two frames, striking out three, including the final out.
 

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BELLARMINE 10, MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE 2

HOW IT HAPPENED
- Lee got the scoring going early as she tripled to right-center field and scored on a sacrifice fly by the freshman Murphy.
- The Knights (1-2) responded by having their first five hitters reach base and score three runs to grab a 3-1 advantage.
- MC would cut the lead to 3-2 on a sacrifice fly by junior Kristen Qualls to score freshman Jessica Aron in the third inning.
- Bellarmine responded again in their half of the third, scoring four runs on three hits and taking a 7-3 advantage.
- They would put the game away in the fourth inning by scoring three runs, which included a two-run home run.
- MC looked to extend the game in the fifth inning, but a diving stab on a line drive by Murphy ended the contest.

KEY STATS
- Lee again led the Lady Choctaws with two hits and a run scored.
- Murphy and Qualls each drove in a run, while Aron scored once.
- Senior Kristen Gardner (0-1) took the loss for MC, allowing seven hits and six earned runs over 3.0 innings.
 

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NEXT UP
- The Lady Choctaws will be back in action on Friday when they face McKendree (2:00 pm) and Henderson State (4:00 pm).
 

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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.