ROLLA, Mo.  --  Missouri S&T Baseball is set for a full slate of home baseball this week, starting with a midweek game against Harding today before the weekend's four-game series against Rockhurst.

About the Miners
S&T is 12-10 this year with a 6-2 record against Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) opponents. They have cruised to a six-game win streak, outscoring opponents 45-12. They swept Truman State over the weekend, extending their win streak vs the Bulldogs to eight games. They now rank third in the GLVC standings.

The team hit a combined .357 in the Truman series, with five Miners hitting .500 or better. Keaton Scott (Hannibal, MO/Hannibal) and Drew Baugus (Kirkwood, MO/Kirkwood) had strong performances in the series, hitting .545 and .500 and combining for 13 hits, 9 RBIs, 6 runs, and 5 stolen bases. Bricen Smith (Perry, GA/Mount de Sales Academy) continues to lead the team in batting average at .390, a mark that ranks him 16th in the GLVC.

Dylan Bates (O'Fallon, MO/Fort Zumwalt West) has had two strong outings in the last two weeks, giving up 0 earned runs in 14 innings, earning his first career shutout, and striking out 17, including an 11-strikeout performance against Truman that was a career-high. The team's ERA over the last six games is 1.96, giving up just ten earned runs while striking out forty.

About the Bisons
The Miners lost a midweek at Harding earlier this year, falling 8-3 in Searcy, Arkansas. Harding is 16-11 this year and have won three of their last four, including a 15-5 victory over #23 Trevecca Nazarene.

Harding is batting .283 this year, a metric that ranks them 8th in the Great American Conference (GAC). Infielder Cooper Newsome is the team's leader in batting average, hitting .330 with 35 hits this season. The S&T bullpen held Newsome in check last game though, only giving up one hit in five at bats.

The Bisons rank fourth in the GAC for earned run average with a mark of 5.84. Harding's three starters have combined for 102 strikeouts this year, with Merrit Jay ranking second in the GAC for strikeout-to-walk ratio.

About the Hawks
Rockhurst is 7-5 against GLVC opponents, ranking them 6th in the conference. After starting last week's series against Indianapolis with a 24-7 loss, they rebounded by taking two of the next three games to earn a series split with the Greyhounds.

The Hawks' .327 batting average is the second-best in the conference and ranks 35th in all of Division II. Michael Laudando is a large part of that success for Rockhurst, ranking second in the conference for hits with 84 and hitting .444 with a .689 slugging percentage.

Rockhurst has had some struggles on the mound this year, giving up ten or more runs on eight separate occasions and ranking 8th in the conference with a 7.28 ERA. Keller Costello is the Hawks' leading pitcher, entering the series vs S&T with a 1.84 ERA that is second in the conference.

What's Next
S&T heads to Southwest Baptist for more GLVC play next weekend with a series that starts on Thursday, April 2nd.

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