(LEBANON, Ill., Apr. 17)--The McKendree University softball team picked up two wins in a Great Lakes Valley Conference doubleheader Sunday at home against Missouri S&T. McKendree struck early in game one picking up an 8-4 victory and a 9-0 shutout in game two.

The Bearcats are now 23-23 overall and 15-11 in GLVC play. McKendree will begin a six-game road trip to close out the 2016 regular season at Lindenwood University on Wednesday for a non-conference doubleheader beginning at 5 p.m.

McKendree honored its two seniors -- Marla Schulte (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon Township) and Taylor Barnouski (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon Township) -- after the doubleheader win as part of Senior Day festivities.

In game one, McKendree grabbed an early 4-0 lead in the first inning.  Jamie Doggendorf (Dittmer, Mo./Northwest) led off the inning with a hit by pitch as Liz Klussman (Washington, Mo./Washington) followed up with a single. With the bases loaded following a Hanna Branch (Kirkwood, Mo./Kirkwood) walk, Doggendorf would cross the plate on a wild pitch. The bats continued to stay hot as junior Rachel Hastings (Forsyth, Ill./Maroa-Forsyth High School) posted an RBI single to score Klussman. The Bearcats capped off the four-run inning as Branch and Hastings would score.

Missouri S&T would find their way on the board in the top of the third. Kyra Slemp doubled to the wall scoring Monica Weiss cutting the Bearcat lead to 5-1. The Miners would not go away, executing a three-run sixth inning to make it 7-4.

McKendree would add an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth thanks to Rachel Hastings (Forsyth, Ill./Maroa-Forsyth High School), who drove in Branch to grab and hold on to an 8-4 win.

With two stolen bases in game one, Jamie Doggendorf (Dittmer, Mo./Northwest) became the single-season record holder in stolen bases for the Bearcat softball program. She now has 25 steals on the season.

Holly Magre (Festus, Mo./St. Pius X) picked up the start and the win in the circle for the Bearcats. Magre threw four innings, allowing one run on three hits with five strikeouts to improve to 13-9 on the season. Barnouski tossed the final three inning in relief for McKendree.

McKendree's bats would not go away in game two as the Bearcats soared to a nine-run shutout that took five innings.

Brooke Gajewski (Kronenwetter, Wis./D.C. Everest) would post two RBIs on a sharp single up the middle, while Hastings doubled to bring in Gajewski giving the Bearcats an early 3-0 lead. Gajewski would not stop there as she scored Branch and Klussman with a two-out single in the bottom of the second. In the fourth Dani Schoenbacher (Tamaroa, Ill./Pinckeyville) would double to bring home Megan Radae (Edwardsville, Ill./Edwardsville High School), while Samantha Cameron (Dix, Ill./Centralia, Ill.) would add a pinch-hit RBI single to score Schoenbacher.

In the circle, freshman Maci Ingram (Woodlawn, Ill./Nashville Community High School) picked up her third shutout of the season improving to 6-9.