JOPLIN, Mo. - The Lincoln softball team scored the first run of the afternoon, but Missouri Southern took advantage of 15 hits to hand the Blue Tigers a pair of losses on Saturday (March 9). The Blue Tigers dropped the opener, 4-1, and fell in the second game, 14-4.

Three consecutive base hits from Abbi Conrad, Maris Ollison and Mackenzie Graham led to Conrad scoring for the Blue Tigers in the top of the first inning in game one, but the Lions answered by plating a run on a sacrifice fly in the bottom half of the frame. An RBI single in the bottom of the second gave MSSU the lead, and the Lions added runs in the fourth and fifth frames to close the scoring. 

Taylor Heimbaugh also had a hit in Saturday's opener while Torri Hinnah provided six putouts and Lindsey Brandt finished with four. Conrad and Ollison each turned two assists. In the circle, Mallorey Rogers pitched the first five frames and struck out four batters while Joss Marriott gave up zero runs and allowed just one hit as LU's closer.

Missouri Southern (18-5, 2-0 MIAA) had a huge offensive start to game two, relying on six hits and an LU error to score nine runs in the bottom of the first inning. Lincoln (7-9, 0-2 MIAA) got a third of those runs back in the top of the second, beginning with a Brandt single into right field that plated Gabby Newman. Heimbaugh drove in Emily Thompson with a base hit up the middle before a hit from Leslie Callahan scored Brandt. Heimbaugh ended up reaching third on a wild pitch, but the Lions were able to force an out to end the inning.

Lincoln kept Missouri Southern off the board in the bottom of the second, but the Lions brought in five more runs in the third to take a commanding lead. Lincoln's final run of the afternoon came in the top of the fifth, as Callahan hit a double and then scored on an infield single by Mackenzie Graham.

Jaedin Blankenship struck out a pair of MSSU batters as Lincoln's closer and Newman tallied a hit while recording two assists. Allison Schwartze also was credited with a pair of assists and Newman finished with a team-high three putouts. Conrad, Hinnah, Thompson and Brandt each recorded two hits apiece.

On Sunday (March 10), Lincoln will travel to Pittsburg, Kan. to play Pittsburg State in a 1:00 p.m. CDT double-header.