BRANSON, MO -- Missouri S&T played four games over the weekend at the Branson Showtime Classic, picking up a win against Nebraska-Kearney yesterday and falling to #13 Central Oklahoma, Missouri Southern and Winona State.
Bronchos 12, Miners 4
Tinley Beecham (Mapleton, IL/) drew the start in game one of the Showtime Classic, struggling early against one of the best offensive teams in the country as the Miners fell behind 5-0 in the first inning. Beecham would only give up one run in the next three innings though, allowing S&T to cut it to a two-run game at 6-4 after
Trista Grobe (DeSoto, MO/DeSoto) hit a grand slam in the bottom of the fourth inning. The Bronchos would hit three home runs in the next two innings though, bringing in six more runs to make it 12-4 and hold on to win in six innings.
Lions 1, Miners 0
A pair of singles and a stolen base were enough to put Missouri Southern up 1-0 in the opening inning, giving them what would turn out to be the only run of the game. The Miners struggled to get much traction at bat against MSSU's Kiki Pickens who ended the day with a career-high 13 strikeouts.
Taylor Nelson (Jefferson City, MO/Phillips Exeter Academy) took a walk to start the top of the seventh inning, putting the winning run on base, but the Miners were unable to bring her home as Pickens continued to get strikeouts, resulting in S&T falling 1-0 in their second game in Branson.
Miners 4, Lopers 1
A single by
Kaylee LaChappell (Oswego, IL/) followed by a walk and a hit by pitch set the Miners up with bases loaded in the fifth at bat of the game with only one out.
Tori Thompson (Chandler, AZ/) was able to capitalize on the situation, singling to right field and bringing LaChappell home.
Mia Miller (Waterloo, IL/) would make short work of the next two innings, getting six outs in seven at bats to keep the Miners ahead by one.
A double by
Sydney Anderson (Elkhart, IA/North Polk) and a walk for Grobe put two runners on base for the Miners in the top of the third.
Keira Jones (Richmond Hill, GA/Richmond Hill) would double to center field to bring both base runners home before crossing home plate herself after a
Jordyn Davis (Broken Arrow, OK/) single. Miller would give up her first and only run of the day in the bottom of the fourth, allowing a double and a single to bring in a run for the Lopers'. Nebraska-Kearney would threaten again in the bottom of the sixth, putting runners on first and second before grounding into a fielders choice play that ended their last chance to come back as the Miners took the win 4-1.
Warriors 8, Miners 0
Both teams recorded hits in the first inning, with the Warriors hitting a double in the top of the first while Nelson singled in the first at bat of the bottom of the inning. Neither team brought any runs home that inning though, nor would they in the next inning either. A double and two singles by Winona State gave them bases loaded with two outs in the top of the third, leading to the Warriors bringing four runners home that inning after a single and a triple by the next two batters. WSU would extend their lead in the top of the fourth on a single after getting a runner to second base on a hit by pitch and stolen base.
A double by
Ty Neal (Enid, OK/Kremlin-Hilldale) served as a promising start to the bottom of the fifth, with the Miners eventually loading the bases before leaving the runners stranded on a strikeout. A triple, a single, and a double in the next two innings were enough to get the Warriors three more runs as they held on for an 8-0 victory.
Grobe led the team in RBIs this weekend after recording four in the first game off a grand slam. Neal performed well in her appearances at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a couple of doubles. On the mound, Beecham's five strikeout performance against #13 UCO was the most in a game by any Miner pitcher this week, as well as an S&T career-best for Beecham.
What's Next
The Miners will host their first home games of the season next week when they play the Drury Panthers in a Great Lakes Valley conference doubleheader that will begin at noon.
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