MELBOURNE, Fla. – Concluding its weekend Sunshine State Conference series, the Saint Leo University softball team dropped its Sunday contest to Florida Tech by a 6-3 final score at Nancy Bottge Field.

The Lions skid to a 28-11 overall season tally with a 4-8 mark in SSC matchups while the Panthers improve to 29-11, 8-4 in conference play.

McKenzie Burns continues to chase history, adding another pair of hits as the centerfielder has accrued 50 this season, four shy of her career-best.  The senior has 189 career hits, passing Tracy Roy ('97) for fifth all-time in Saint Leo program history.

The Lions jumped on Panthers starter Rachel Pence early, touching up the ace for two runs in the opening frame as both Adriana Sanders and Cassie Boggs plated a runner.  FIT fired a return salvo in the home half, chipping in a run to push the score to a 2-1 tally in favor of the Green and Gold.

Senior Torrie Weindorf blasted a solo home run in the second frame to add an insurance run to the margin.  Florida Tech would knot the score in their half of the stanza, as Brigit Godfrey scored two RBI to draw the contest even at 3-3.

The Panthers took their first lead of the game, plating a trio of runs in the bottom of the sixth to conclude the scoring.  Florida Tech completed the sweep with a 6-3 win.

FIT pitcher Taylor Smith (8-3) was given the win, pitching a pair of scoreless innings in relief of Pence.  Freshman Samantha Tyler (5-2) earned the loss, tossing five innings while yielding four runs off of seven hits while striking out four batters.

Saint Leo will return home to host Rollins College, Thursday, April 2 for a 6 p.m. start. Live stats will be available through www.saintleolions.com.

For more information on the Saint Leo softball program, visit SaintLeoLions.com.  Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Lions news by following Saint Leo Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.