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EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Missouri State softball (14-29, 10-12 MVC) suffered a 6-5 walk-off loss to open the series against Evansville (15-30, 10-12 MVC) here Friday night.
The Bears jumped on Evansville early, scoring two runs in the first via an Annie Mueller two-run homer. Mueller’s blast marked her 15th of the season, breaking the MSU single-season home run record set by McKenzie Vaughan last season.
Gracie Johnston and the Bears defense didn’t allow a hit through the first three innings as MSU held on to its two-run lead. In the top of the fourth, Kenzie Derryberry added to Missouri State’s lead with a solo shot over the wall in left field for her second home run of the season.
The Aces stranded two runners in the bottom of the fourth after back-to-back singles, but Evansville would eventually break through in the fifth.
Evansville would score in each of the final three innings in their comeback effort, beginning in the fifth with a solo home run to make it a 3-1 ballgame. After MSU left two runners on in the top of the sixth, the Aces knocked back-to-back two-out solo homers to knot the game at 3-3 headed to the seventh.
Missouri State wasn’t going down without a fight as Alexis Perales reached on an error to lead off the seventh, which would prove to be costly for Evansville later in the inning. Following a fielder’s choice and a fly out to put two outs on the board, Chloe Merced and Kayla Ulrich knocked back-to-back RBI singles to give the Bears a 5-3 advantage headed to the bottom of the seventh with a chance to close it out.
Unfortunately, after two quick outs to begin the seventh, Evansville drew a walk and sent a base hit to right field to get two runners on. That’s when the Aces’ Jenna Nink walked the game off with a three-run homer to left center, defeating the Bears 6-5 to in game one of the series.
The Bears and Aces will face off in game two of the series tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. The game will stream on ESPN+.
