Kearney, Neb. -- The Missouri Southern baseball team hit four home runs and Austin White had a grand slam as the Lions split a double-header at Nebraska-Kearney today, winning game one 16-6, but falling in the nightcap 4-2. 

The loss for the Lions (24-25, 17-22 MIAA), coupled with a split by Northeastern State at Washburn, means Southern is officially eliminated from MIAA Tournament contention. 

Southern picked up a complete-game win in the opener from Ryan Bates as the senior scattered 13 hits and allowed five earned to move his record to 4-3 on the season. 

The Lions scored often and early in game one, plating seven in the first and one in the second. Logan moon started things with a lead-off double and he scored on an RBI single from Evin Natick. After a pair of outs, Brett Graham singled and Mitchell Osburn followed that up with an RBI single and a walk to Brandon Weller loaded the bases. Jared Lupo walked home a run to make the score 3-0 before White's grand slam cleared the bases. 

Weller picked up an RBI single in the second, scoring Graham, before the Lopers (29-17, 23-16 MIAA) scored a run in the bottom half of the inning to make the score 8-1 after two. 

The Lions added two more runs in the sixth on a sacrifice fly from Graham and an RBI single from Osburn before plating five in the sixth and one in the seventh. Home runs from Graham and Weller highlighted the sixth, while an RBI double from Natick in the seventh scored Moon. 

White went 1-4 with a run and four RBIs. Moon, Natick and Graham had three hits each with Graham driving in three and scoring three times, while Moon scored three times of his own. Natick drove in two and scored a run, while Osburn had a pair of runs and RBIs. Weller went 2-3 with two runs and three driven in, while Lupo drove in a run and scored once. 

Game two saw the Lopers score a run on Lions' starter Payton Walker in the second. Southern tied the score at one with a run in the third on a sacrifice fly from Axel Johnson scoring Moon. 

UNK got two more in the third, before the Lions would get back to within one run with a home run from Matt Smith in the sixth. The Lopers added an insurance run in the sixth for the final tally. 

Walker started and went five and a third, striking out two, walking none and allowing just two earned on six hits. Stephen Vaughn threw the final two thirds, striking out two. 

Natick went 3-4 in game two, while Moon, Johnson, Smith, Weller and Beau Phillips had a hit each. Moon and Smith scored the lone runs. 

The Lions will finish up the season tomorrow afternoon with a single, nine-inning game at 1 pm from Kearney.