ROLLA, Mo. – Missouri S&T used a 17-hit attack and a massive fourth-inning outburst to defeat Harding 16-2 on Tuesday afternoon at the Ballpark at S&T.

The Miners (13-10) broke the game open early, scoring in five of the six innings they came to the plate. Harding (16-12) struggled to contain the S&T offense, which benefited from eight runs in the fourth inning to pull away.

Missouri S&T began the scoring in the second with an RBI double from Will Muench and a sacrifice fly from Landen Roberts. They extended the lead to 7-0 in the third, highlighted by a two-run triple down the right-field line by Muench. Muench finished the day 2-for-3 with four RBIs and two runs scored.

Harding got on the board in the top of the fourth when Easton Jones doubled and later scored on a Jack Opoien groundout. However, the Miners responded immediately in the bottom half of the frame. S&T sent 13 batters to the plate in the fourth, scoring eight runs—five of which were unearned following a Harding error—to push the lead to 15-1.

The Bisons added their final run in the fifth inning. After loading the bases, Cooper Schutte drew a walk to plate Cooper Thompson, who had reached earlier on a pinch-hit double.

Harding starter Ricky Howell (0-3) took the loss, allowing seven runs on seven hits in 2.2 innings. Missouri S&T's Zander Street (1-1) earned the win, limiting the Bisons to one run over 4.0 innings of work.

Garrett Meyer led the Miners at the plate, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs, while Denton Damgaard added three hits and three runs scored. For Harding, seven different players recorded one hit each in the seven-inning contest.

UP NEXT Harding returns to Great American Conference play this weekend as they travel to Arkansas-Monticello. The three-game series begins Friday at 6 p.m.