Joplin, Mo. - The Missouri Southern baseball team hosted Emporia State University Hornets in a conference matchup. The Lions used timely hitting and strong relief pitching to outlast Emporia State in a 10-7 victory at Warren Turner Field. Ethan Clark led the charge at the plate, while Walker Sweet's shutdown performance secured the series-opening win.
 
Missouri Southern (17-12, 10-9 MIAA) | Emporia State (14-12, 7-9 MIAA)
In the bottom of the first inning, Southern evened the score at 1-1 after Drew Townsend walked and later scored on a double by Jake Leeker down the left field line.

Emporia State took the lead in the second inning, adding two runs in the third inning, 2-1.

In the fourth inning, the Lions added three runs. Brayden Luikart doubled down the right field line to bring in one run, while a two-RBI single from Ethan Clark extended the lead, 4-3.

The Hornets would score two runs in the fifth inning. The offensive surge continued in the bottom of the fifth inning with another three runs for Southern, highlighted by a Chayton Beck RBI groundout and a two-RBI double from Ethan Clark, increasing their advantage to 7-5.

Southern added another run in the sixth inning with a solo home run by Blake Jones, maintaining a slim lead. In the seventh, two more runs crossed the plate with a two-RBI single from Nate Mieszkowski, bringing the score to 10-7 and securing the victory after the Hornets were held scoreless for the final three innings.

Ethan Clark led with four hits and four RBIs, including two doubles. Blake Jones added a hit and two walks with a home run, contributing one run and one RBI. Chayton Beck tallied three hits, one RBI, and a run. The Lions tallied 17 hits.

Cole Gayman pitched 5.1 innings, struck out seven batters, and faced 27. In relief, Walker Sweet pitched 3.2 innings, earning the win and allowing no hits or runs. Sweet also struck out two batters, issued one walk and faced 12 batters.
 
Stats Tracker

• Hits: Ethan Clark (4), Cy Darnell (3), Chayton Beck (3), Jake Leeker (2)
• RBIs: Ethan Clark (4), Nate Mieszkowski (2), Brayden Luikart (1), Jake Leeker (1), Blake Jones (1), Chayton Beck (1)
• 2B: Brayden Luikart (1), Ethan Clark (2), Jake Leeker (1)
• HR: Blake Jones (1)
• SB: Nate Mieszkowski (1)
• HBP: Treghan Parker (1), Nate Mieszkowski (1)
• Pitching:
  • Cole Gayman: 5.1 IP, 10 H, 7 ER, 7 SO
  • Walker Sweet (W, 1-0): 3.2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 2 SO

Up Next:
The Lions return home on Saturday, March 29, for game two of their series against Emporia State. First pitch is set for 1:00 PM at Warren Turner Field.
   
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