Rolla, Mo. – The Missouri S&T softball nine opened the home portion of its 2016 schedule on Monday splitting a doubleheader with Harding University. S&T (4-11) dropped the opener 2-0 but bounced back in the nightcap for a 6-3 victory.

Game 2 – Missouri S&T 6 Harding 3
In the nightcap the Bison (16-8) opened the scoring with a run in the top of the first. With two outs Kinsey Beck singled to center, stole second and scored on Kimmy Hendricks single to left. The Lady Miners answered with a two out rally of its own in the bottom of the frame. Kyra Slemp (Roeland Park, Kan./Shawnee Mission East) started the rally with a single to short and came into score on a double over the center fielder's head off the bat of Savannah Fedorchak (Oakville, Mo./Oakville).

S&T took its first lead of the day in the home half of the third. With one out Hannah Franceschini (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield Central) singled to left. After a pop out, Fedorchak worked through a nine-pitch at-bat fouling off three straight pitches. With a full count she drove the ball to left center and it kept carrying over the fence for a two-run homer for her first of the year.

The Lady Miners added to their lead in the fourth. With one out Monica Weiss (St. Louis, Mo./Marquette ) singled to left center. After a strikeout, Ashley Hill (Centralia, Mo./Centralia) singled off the glove of a diving second basemen into right field then Andi Davis (Blue Springs, Mo./Archbishop O'Hara ) followed with another single to load the bases. Franceschini cleared the bases driving a 1-0 pitch to the gap in left center for a three-run double.

Harding cut the lead in half with two runs in the top of the sixth. Mackenzie Jones and Brookelyn Moon hit back-to-back doubles to make it 6-2. A sacrifice fly from Amanda Berdon scored Moon to make it 6-3.

Hill set down the Bison in order in the seventh to earn the complete game victory and earned first win as a Lady Miner. She allowed three runs, two earned, on six hits with three walks and two strikeouts to even her record at 1-1.

Offensively, S&T finished the game with nine hits led by Weiss, Franceschini and Fedorchak who combined for seven of those. Fedorchak and Franceschini had three runs batted in each.

Game 1 – Harding 2 Missouri S&T 0
In the opener on Monday the Bison struck first with a pair of unearned runs in the top of the first. That would be all they got as Kati Viets (Sweet Springs, Mo./Sweet Springs) went the distance allowing only five hits but did issue five walks while striking out two.

The Lady Miners had chances in the second, third, fourth, sixth and seventh innings with the tying runs either on base or at the plate but couldn't get the key hit when they needed it.

S&T was held to just five hits in the first game with Franceschini, Weiss, Fedorchak, Cailey Baker (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield) and Morgan Imhoff (Jamestown, Mo./Jamestown) registering one each.

The Lady Miners are back in action on Saturday as they open Great Lakes Valley Conference play traveling to Evansville, Ind., to take on Southern Indiana in a doubleheader beginning at 12 p.m.