JOPLIN, Mo. – Missouri S&T opened its Great Lakes Valley Conference schedule Sunday with an offensive explosion in game one of its doubleheader with William Jewell at Joe Becker Stadium, but was shut down by Cardinal hurler Mack Stephenson in the nightcap as the teams split the twinbill.

The Miners blanked the Cardinals 11-0 in the opener, but Jewell captured a 4-1 decision in game two.

Sunday's opener saw the Miners (7-5, 1-1 GLVC) jump out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning against WJC starter Reed Pegram.  Cameron  Burk was hit by a pitch to open the contest and went to second on a wild pitch, before a double by Jason Volkmann (Liberty, MO/Liberty) brought him across the plate.  Following a walk to Matt Gruse (Neenah, WI/Neenah) and a double steal, Matt Knickerbocker (Bayfield, CO/Bayfield) singled with one out to bring home both runners.

After the Cardinals (6-7-1, 1-1 GLVC) changed pitchers in the first, Doug Wood (Liberty, MO/Liberty North) delivered a sacrifice fly to score Knickerbocker with the fourth run of the inning.

The Miners continued the offensive onslaught in the fourth as their first four hitters reached base.  Drew Aldana (El Paso, TX/JM Hanks) led off the inning with a hit, then Kaleb Reid (Smithville, MO/Smithville) and Burk were hit by pitches to load the bases.  Volkmann doubled home the first two runners, then Gruse singled home Burk to make it 7-0 and prompt another Cardinal pitching change.

Gruse scored later in the fourth when Zach Bracken (Berthoud, CO/Berthoud) hit into a fielder's choice.   S&T would score two more in the fifth, as Reid – who reached base when he was hit by a pitch – scored on a throwing error and Tim Lira (Granger, IN/Penn) delivered a run-scoring hit later in the frame, then put its 11^th run on the scoreboard in the seventh when Knickerbocker reached on an infield hit to score Volkmann.

Volkmann reached base in the seventh with his fifth hit in the contest, becoming the 11^th player in Miner history to record a five-hit game.

Luke Marcheschi (Bloomington, IL/Central Catholic) was the beneficiary of the offensive output as he blanked the Cardinals on five hits and struck out three in an 85-pitch outing, retiring the final 10 Jewell hitters.  The Miners outhit Jewell 13-5, with Knickerbocker also delivering three hits for S&T.

After getting blanked in the first game, Jewell's Tyler Murphy led off game two with a home run off S&T starter Dalton Erger (Imperial, MO/Seckman).   The Cardinals added to that lead in the third on a Anthony Hansen's RBI single, then put two more on the board an inning later on run-scoring hits by Logan Becker and Murphy.

S&T got on the scoreboard in the fifth when Volkmann drove in Wood with a sacrifice fly, but left two in the inning and couldn't cut into the margin.

The Miners struggled to get any offense going against Stephenson, who held S&T to two hits in a complete game performance.  Reid had the Miners' first hit in the fifth and Knickerbocker had the other with a leadoff single in the sixth.

Erger allowed eight hits and fanned seven in his eight innings of work on the afternoon.

Missouri S&T and William Jewell will play the rubber match of their series on Monday at noon in Joplin.