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Missouri Southern jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead on Bulldog starter Hannah Washburn (Keokuk, Iowa) but, after the Bulldogs escaped a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the top of the third,

Truman took advantage of a Lion miscue in the bottom half of the inning.

With two out and the bases full of Bulldogs, Meredith Kusky (Ballwin, Mo.) popped up to second base with what appeared to be an inning-ending out.

However, the Lion second baseman dropped the ball, allowing Klipsch (St. Louis, Mo.) and Liz Leath (St. Charles, Mo.) to score and put Truman on top.

Then, in the next at-bat, Cate Simon (O'Fallon, Mo.) drilled a pitch to the opposite field, scoring both Kusky and Laura Miller (Columbia, Mo.) for a 4-1 Bulldog lead.

The Lions would claw to within one in the fifth, but the Bulldogs scored another unearned run in the fifth before exploding for four runs in the sixth – capped by a two-RBI Kusky double down the left field line – for a 9-3 lead and eventual final score.

Leath provided three hits for Truman, while Washburn struck out nine in the complete game seven-hitter for her ninth win of the season.

Game 2 Recap

Missouri Southern again got out to a 1-0 lead, this time in the third inning on an RBI double to right-center.

However, the Bulldogs retaliated quickly, as Klipsch blasted a two-run shot to right center before Leath completed the second end of back-to-back homeruns with a solo blast to right for a 3-1 Truman lead.

The Lions would score one in the fourth and also took advantage of a Bulldog defensive mistake in the top of the seventh to tie the game.

With two out and a runner on third, a high popup landed between a handful of Bulldog infielders, allowing the tying run to score at 3-3.

But then, in the last of the seventh, Corey Niblett (Troy, Mo.) led off with a single. Following a Kelsey Bollman (Maquoketa, Iowa) sacrifice that moved Niblett to second, Klipsch delivered a shot to left that brought Niblett to the plate for the 4-3 walkoff victory.

Kindra Henze (Palmyra, Mo.) (3-1) tossed a complete game in the circle, allowing two earned runs and striking out six while walking just one and allowing four hits. Klipsch and Leath added two hits each.

Courtesy Truman State University