ARKADELPHIA, Ark. - The Lincoln softball team continued its season on Sunday (Feb. 4), dropping a pair of games at the Ronnie Hawkins Invitational in Arkansas. Below are brief recaps of those contests:

Southern Arkansas 5, Lincoln 0
The Lincoln softball team turned in its best defensive performance of the young season in Sunday's opener, but late runs allowed Southern Arkansas, an NCAA tournament participant a year ago, to earn a 5-0 win over the Blue Tigers.

Camryn Pryor had the lone hit for LU while the Muleriders tallied seven, including a solo homerun in the bottom of the fifth inning. That was the first run of the contest, as the teams had combined to pitch shutouts through the first four frames.

Southern Arkansas (3-0) managed to score four more runs in the bottom of the seventh, and did not allow any Blue Tiger batter to advance farther than second base. Madison Ragar pitched the complete game for Lincoln (0-3), and struck out four batters.

Pryor and Rachael Balke tied for the team-high in putouts with four apiece, and Mykenzie Livesay was next with three. Tori Nienhueser turned two assists.

Ouachita Baptist 8, Lincoln 1
The Blue Tigers struck first in Sunday's second game, but Ouachita Baptist used a big fifth inning to produce an 8-1 win over Lincoln.

Jordan Lawson got on board in the top of the first inning via a walk, and Tori Nienhueser drove her to second on a single through the middle. Emily Williams then notched a base hit deep enough into right field to send home Lawson, giving Lincoln (0-4) an early 1-0 lead.

Ouachita Baptist (1-2) evened the score with a solo homerun in the bottom of the first, and the teams played scoreless softball until the bottom of the fourth, when OBU broke the tie on an RBI bunt. Ouachita Baptist then blew the game open in the fifth with six more runs on five hits.

Lincoln had a runner in scoring position in the top of the sixth, and loaded the bases in the seventh, but OBU kept the Blue Tigers off the board. Delayne Patton started the game and fanned three opposing batters while Lawson registered a strikeout as LU's closer.

Camryn Pryor led Lincoln with six putouts while Emily Williams was next with four. Chelsey Kerr provided four assists.

The Blue Tigers will now be off until Tuesday, Feb. 13, when Lincoln will make the short trip down to Rolla, Mo. for a double-header against Missouri S&T. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. CST.