PLEASANT GROVE, Ala. --- Freshman Hannah Creel tossed the first no-hitter for the Mississippi College softball team since 2016 in a doubleheader sweep of Miles College on Tuesday afternoon at Miles Softball Field.

The Lady Choctaws (22-6) opened the day with a 9-0 victory, while they hit a season-high four home runs in a 13-1 victory over the Golden Bears (2-23) in the second game.
 

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GAME ONE: #23 MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE 9, MILES 0 (5 INNINGS)

HOW IT HAPPENED

>> The Lady Choctaws scored the eventual game-winning run in the first inning as junior Morgan Bradford trotted home on a wild pitch.
>> MC then put three two-out runs on the board in the second inning as freshman Gracie Trahan hit her second home run of the season and junior Carly Crawford drove in a run with a hit-by-pitch to make the score 4-0.
>> Sophomore Kayla Murphy, who returned after missing 18 games, doubled in junior Abbey Salvo to open the third inning, and two more runs came across to give MC a 7-0 lead.
>> MC added two more runs in the fifth as Murphy scored on a single by Trahan and junior Shayla McKissock scored on an error by the Miles defense to give the game its final score.

KEY STATS

>> Creel (9-1) did not need much run support as she allowed just one baserunner over 5.0 innings on an error, and that runner was erased as junior Carly Crawford threw her out trying to steal second.
>> It was the first no-hitter for an MC pitcher since Carlie Sargent tossed a perfect game against UAH on April 16, 2016.
>> Creel struck out nine batters with no walks and dropped her ERA to 1.62 on the season.
>> Murphy led the MC offense with three hits and three runs scored, while Trahan had a pair of hits with a team-high three RBI.
>> Bradford also had a pair of base-hits, while McKissock scored twice.
 

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GAME TWO: #23 MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE 13, MILES 1 (5 INNINGS)

HOW IT HAPPENED

>> The second game saw the Lady Choctaws get another first inning run as sophomore Ashley Elsensohn drew a leadoff walk, stole second and third and scored on an error by the Golden Bears.
>> Miles responded, however, in their half of the first as Davis Watkins reached on an error and scored on a fielder's choice to tie the score at 1-1 after an inning.
>> MC wasted no time grabbing the lead back for good in the second as junior Kendal Daniels hit her first home run of the season to lead off the frame.
>> Two more runs scored in the third as Murphy singled home senior Alexia Harmon, and freshman Annemarie Peavy scored on another Miles error.
>> MC put up four more runs in the fourth, highlighted by Daniels' second home run of the game, this time a two-run shot that scored Peavy.
>> The Lady Choctaws broke the game open in the fifth with five runs, starting with a solo home run from Harmon, her first of the season.
>> After Murphy singled home Peavy, senior Kristen Qualls hit her 30th career home run, a three-run shot that brought home Murphy and Daniels to give the game its final score.

KEY STATS

>> The Lady Choctaws racked up 10 or more hits for the fourth straight game, led by three from Daniels, who also tied with Peavy for a team-high three runs scored.
>> Murphy and Qualls also had multi-hit games, while Qualls drove in a team-high four runs.
>> The four RBI for Rudy gives her 133 for her career, just two behind Brooke Smitherman (2011-15) for the all-time lead in MC history.
>> Harmon and Murphy also drove in a pair of runs in the contest.
>> Sophomore Madi Lancaster (2-0) collected the win in the circle, allowing just one hit and one unearned run over the complete game effort.
>> The Lady Choctaws, who were held without a home run for the first 12 games of the season, have hit 18 over their last 16 games and 11 over their last five.
 

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NEXT UP

>> The Lady Choctaws are scheduled to be back in action this weekend when they travel to face Auburn Montgomery in a three-game Gulf South Conference series. The teams will open the set on Friday night at 6:30 p.m.
 

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Mississippi College is a private Christian university located in Clinton, Mississippi with an enrollment of over 5,000 students. MC 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.