DES MOINES, Iowa – Missouri State softball is now 25-17 (18-6) on the year after a split here Friday afternoon at Drake. The Bears dropped game one 0-2, before bouncing back to run-rule the Bulldogs, 13-4, in game two.
 
In the circle, Jacie Taber earned MSU's win on the day. Taber tossed three innings of one-hit relief against the Bulldogs in her first career victory, while striking out one.
 
Offensively, Steffany Dickerson led the way for the Bears offensively, going 3-for-5 across both games. In the second game of the afternoon, Dickerson went 2-for-3 with five RBI and a three-run home run. Alex Boze and Annie Mueller also had multi-RBI games, with Boze going 3-for-3 with a double and two RBI and Mueller going 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI.
 
 
Game 1
Drake 2, Missouri State 0
In game one, the Bulldogs came out and jumped on the board first against MSU. After the first two innings that saw just three hits combined for both teams, Drake scored two runs off of three hits and a MSU error.
 
That two-run third was all the Bulldogs would need, as the Bears were held scoreless in game one. Daphne Plummer led the way for MSU with two hits in the first game, while Olivia Krehbiel and Dickerson contributed the other two hits.
 
In the circle, Dickerson went the distance and allowed just one earned run, while striking out five Bulldogs.
 
Game 2
Missouri State 13, Drake 4
In the second game of the day, Missouri State turned it on offensively as they run-ruled Drake, 13-4, in five innings.
 
MSU wasted no time scoring runs, pushing across three runs in the first inning with two outs on the board. The Bears knocked five consecutive base hits to score Krehbiel, Boze and Dickerson to take the early lead.
 
Drake loaded the bases in the home half of the first, but starting pitcher Madison Hunsaker worked her way out of the jam to hold the Bulldogs scoreless.
 
In the top of the second, the Bears scored six runs on five hits, with Skyler Shaw leading off the inning with a walk. From there, Plummer doubled and Hunsaker sent a sacrifice fly to left field to score another run. Following a Krehbiel fielder's choice and Boze walk, Dickerson launched her fourth homer of the year, a three-run shot, to put MSU up 7-0.
 
Annie Mueller got in on the home run in the next at-bat, sending a solo shot over the fence in left center to push the Bears lead to 8-0. Tess Weakly then singled and Kelsie Lewis drew a walk to turn the lineup back over to Shaw, who singled and scored Weakly for the sixth run of the inning.
 
MSU scored two more runs in the third via a couple of singles and walks. Plummer singled and Hunsaker walked to lead off the inning, before Krehbiel walked to load the bases. Boze knocked an RBI single before a Dickerson ground out scored the second run as MSU went up 11-0 after two and a half innings.
 
Drake cut into the MSU lead in the bottom of the third with three singles to lead off the inning, before knocking a grand slam to make it an 11-4 ballgame. Taber entered in relief and forced the Bulldogs into three straight outs to minimize the damage.
 
Missouri State added a couple of insurance runs and set themselves up in run-rule territory with a single from Hunsaker and RBI doubles courtesy of Krehbiel and Boze.
 
Taber allowed just one hit over the final two innings, as the Bears evened the series at one game each.
 
Missouri State and Drake face off in the rubber match tomorrow (May 7) with first pitch set for 12 p.m.