Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score | Season Stats | MVC-Only Stats  | Highlights
 
SPRINGFIELD – Senior Kaitlin Beason's 21^st career home run was a special one here Saturday. With two outs in the bottom of the seventh of Missouri State's second game against Indiana State, the right-handed hitting first baseman blasted a high, towering solo shot to left field to give the Bears a 5-4 walk-off win and doubleheader sweep of the Sycamores on senior day.
 
The Bears also won the first game of the twin bill, 3-1, thanks to a two-run single in the fourth by fellow senior Erika Velasquez Zimmer and a complete-game effort from classmate Holly Kelley in the circle.
 
"Every win is huge in conference," said MSU head coach Holly Hesse. "But to come from behind twice on senior day was really special. At the beginning of the day, I talked about the opportunity we had to make this our best day on the field yet, and that's exactly what we did."
 
MSU (31-16, 16-5 MVC) clinched its fifth straight Valley series win and reached 31 wins for just the second time since 2000.
 
 
Game 1
Missouri State 3, Indiana State 1
 
The Bears overcame an early deficit and captured their 30^th win with a 3-1 decision in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader.
 
Kelley (12-3) went the distance for MSU with her eighth complete game. She struck out seven and gave up just five hits for the victory.
 
After falling behind on a second-inning solo home run from ISU pitcher Kylie Stober, the Bears scratched across a two-out run in the third to tie it. Darian Frost's single to left field plated senior Hailee Vigneaux who started the inning with a base hit.
 
The Bears broke it open in the fourth on a two-run single to right by Velasquez Zimmer. The clutch two-out grounder scored Kelly Metter – who reached on an error -- and Kelley who walked.
 
Frost went 2-for-3 to lead the MSU offensive attack in the opener.
 
Bella Peterson had a pair of hits for the Sycamores. Stober (7-9) struck out one and allowed five MSU hits. Her blast in the second was her first home run of the campaign.
 
 
Game 2
Missouri State 5, Indiana State 4
 
Beason's walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh lifted the Bears to a 5-4 win and provided MSU with its third walk-off homer of the campaign.
 
Just like the first game, Indiana State score first to set the pace. An RBI single by Mallory Marsicek in the top of the third pushed the visitors ahead 1-0.
 
The Bears retaliated in the fourth. A leadoff double by Daphne Plummer paid off two batters later when Beason lined a shot off the left field wall to tie the game, 1-1.
 
Plummer and Beason both finished 3-for-4 in the second game.
 
Missouri State threatened again in the fifth, but had a base hit by Kyana Mason taken away when she was called out for being out of the batter's box. Later in the inning, with two on and one out, Plummer's hit drilled runner Velasquez Zimmer for the second out, and Frost flew out to right to end the frame.
 
The momentum shifted back to ISU in the sixth when Stober drove in two more Sycamore runners with a double to center to make it a 3-1 contest.
 
The Bears then retook the lead in the bottom of the sixth on a strange two-out sequence. MSU loaded the bases on singles by Beason and Hannah Heinrichs and a walk to Madison Hunsaker. ISU starter Abby Kruzel induced two straight ground balls to force runners out at the plate before Velasquez Zimmer came up. She hit a grounder to short that Marsicek threw to third, but the ball not only got away from Shaye Barton, but ended up scoring all three MSU runners to put the Bears on top, 4-3.
 
The visitors tied it again briefly in the top of the seventh when Barton redeemed herself with a two-out, two-strike single to plate the speedy Leslie Sims from second.
 
But Beason was up to the moment in the bottom of the inning, smashing her decisive walk-off hit to provide the Bears with their 16^th Valley win of the year.
 
Steffany Dickerson (6-5) got the win out of the MSU bullpen, pitching the final two-thirds of an inning of the seventh. She relieved Erin Griesbauer who struck out three and allowed just six hits in 6.1 innings of work.
 
"In the whole month of April, our pitching has been great," said Hesse. "Erin did a great job, and Steff came in and did what we needed her to do in the seventh. All of our pitchers really contributed in a big way."
 
Marsicek went 3-for-4 for ISU, while starter Kruzel went 4.1 innings with three strikeouts. Arielle Blankenship (8-4) took the loss after surrendering four of MSU's nine hits in her 2.1 innings.
 
 
Coming Up Next
The Bears wrap up the three-game series with Indiana State on Sunday at 11 a.m. at Killian Stadium.
 
For all the latest information on the Missouri State softball team, including weather and schedule updates, visit MissouriStateBears.com or follow @MSUSoftball on Twitter.