Emporia, Kan. – The Missouri Southern softball team split its pair of games beginning with an impressive 5-3 victory over No. 14 Missouri-St. Louis, but ending in an 8-0 loss to Henderson State to conclude the 6-State Classic inside the Trusler Sports Complex Sunday afternoon.

Game 1
Southern (4-5) jumped out to a great start by batting 1 through 9 in the first and scored three runs to lead 3-0 after one.  No. 14 UMSL (3-5) would not go away as the Tritons got on the board in the third from a single and added another in the fifth to find themselves down only one.

The Lions matched them in their half of the fifth and then again after both teams traded runs in the sixth. Things did get interesting in the top of the seventh as the Tritons put two runners on second and third with two outs. Freshman Abby Atkin settled in by striking out the final batter for the save and the team's first win over a ranked opponent this season.

Junior pitcher Taurean Guzman earned the win after holding the UMSL offense to three runs in sixth innings pitched.

Shortstop Shelby Friend went 2-for-3 with a double and run scored as part of the early start in the first. First baseman Erika Lutgen also recorded a 2-for-3 stand at the plate with a RBI-double to stretch out MSSU's lead to two in the fifth.

Game 2
Both teams began scoreless in back-to-back innings until Henderson State (8-3) registered three runs in the third and four in the fourth before adding the extra run to turn the game final in the fifth.

The Lions (4-6) managed three singles in the game by left fielder Elizabeth Windsor, right fielder Abi Corbett, and Lutgen.

Pitcher Natalie Hamm fell to 1-1 on the season after allowing seven runs (four earned) on four hits, while striking out two.
 
Next Up
Softball heads back to Joplin for its home opener against Texas A&M University – Commerce in a two-day series beginning at 1:00 pm on Saturday, Feb. 24 and continuing into Sunday, Feb. 25 with each day consisting of a double header inside the Pat Lipira Softball Complex.