Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 (Rolla, Mo.) – The Missouri S&T Lady Miners got off to fast starts in both games, but had to settle for a split with the Quincy Hawks in a doubleheader on Friday. S&T dropped the opener 7-6, but rebounded to win the second contest 7-2.

Things started out great for the Lady Miners (5-9, 4-4 GLVC) in the first inning of the opener as the first three batters reached safely. Kaylea Smith (Blue Springs, Mo./Blue Springs) drove in the first run with a groundout to second and then Kate Runyan (Crown Point, Ind./Boone Grove) lined a single into left center to plate two more. An error and a wild pitch put runners at second and third with one out, but S&T could only get one of them home with Runyan scoring on a passed ball.

Quincy (10-16, 5-7 GLVC) sent 10 hitters to the plate in the third scoring five runs on seven hits to take the lead. It added to its lead in the fourth with back-to-back two out doubles to make it 6-4. It stayed that way until the seventh when the Hawks got an important insurance run.

The Lady Miners rallied in the home half of the seventh as Andi Davis (Blue Springs, Mo./Archbishop O'Hara ) and Kyra Slemp (Roeland Park, Kan./Shawnee Mission East) started the inning with back-to-back singles and an error to get to second and third with no one out. Cailey Baker (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield) brought Davis home with a groundout to second. After a pop-out to short, Slemp scored on a wild pitch to make it 7-6. Runyan started the rally again working a walk and then Shelby Michaelis (Bettendorf, Iowa/Bettendorf) lined a double into left center to put the winning run in scoring position. The runners would be stranded as a strikeout looking ended the contest.

S&T banged out nine hits in the opener led by Davis and Runyan with two apiece. Runyan also drove in two runs. Taylor Keal (Blue Springs, Mo./Blue Springs South) suffered the loss allowing five runs, four earned, on seven hits in two-plus innings of work. She walked one and struck out one.

The Lady Miners broke on top early in the nightcap as well. Davis led off with a single and then stole second and went to third on Slemp's groundout to second. Cailey Baker (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield) drove her in hitting a ball deep into the hole at short and the shortstop tried to throw Davis out the plate, but the throw wasn't in time. Baker then went to second on a passed ball and then came around to score on two wild pitches to make it 2-0.

S&T added to its lead with another run in the second. Michaelis led off with a single and stole second. She went to third on Erin Premer (McCook, Neb./McCook)'s single off the third baseman's glove and scored on a wild pitch.

The Hawks responded with one in the third, but the Lady Miners added two more in the home half of the third to extend their lead to 5-1. Quincy scored again in the fifth to cut the lead to 5-2, but S&T countered with two more in the bottom half of the inning to make it 7-2.

The Lady Miners banged out nine hits in game two as well led by Michaelis with three and Davis added two. Keal picked up the win allowing a run on two hits while striking out two and walking one in her four innings of work. Becca Strope (Glen Carbon, Ill./Edwardsville) went the rest of the way allowing a run on three hits with a walk and three strikeouts to earn her first save of the season.

S&T is back at home on Saturday morning when it plays host to Illinois Springfield in a doubleheader beginning at 10 a.m. The games were originally scheduled to start at 12 p.m., but moved up due to the threat of rain in the forecast for the afternoon.