SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Missouri State softball improved to 13-15 on the season with a 5-2 midweek win over Tulsa (14-14) here Wednesday night.
 
The victory marked MSU's third straight victory over the Golden Hurricane.
 
Mackenzie Chacon (3-3) earned the victory in the circle for the Bears after tossing 2.2 scoreless innings and striking out one. Gracie Johnston collected the save as she entered the game in the seventh inning following a leadoff single, and kept Tulsa at bay to secure the MSU win.
 
Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week McKenzie Vaughan continued swinging a hot bat as she went 1-for-2 with a two-run homer, a run scored and a walk. Olivia Krehbiel also logged an RBI on the night, while freshman Abby Ford scored two runs, walked twice and stole two bases.
 
MSU jumped on the board quickly as Ford drew a walk to lead off the bottom of the first for MSU, before Vaughan launched a two-run shot over the wall in left field three batters later.
 
Following a quiet second frame for both sides, Tulsa tied things up at 2-2 in the top of the third with an RBI-triple down the right field line and an infield single.
 
In the home half of the fourth, Missouri State reclaimed the lead for good as they put the pressure on Tulsa on the base paths. Ellie McCoy knocked a one-out single to left before eventually stealing both second and third base. In the attempt to get McCoy stealing third, TU committed an error which allowed McCoy to score the go-ahead run.
 
After forcing a 1-2-3 inning in the top of the fifth, MSU tacked on two insurance runs in the bottom of the inning. Kenzie Derryberry reached on an error to lead off the fifth, followed by a Ford bunt single and steal to put runners on second and third with no outs. A wild pitch allowed Derryberry to score and a Krehbiel single up the middle scored the second run of the frame, giving MSU a 5-2 lead after five.
 
Tulsa managed a single in the sixth and a couple of base runners in the seventh, but in the final inning Tess Weakly caught a Tulsa runner trying to steal second and Johnston forced two fly outs to secure MSU's fourth consecutive victory, 5-2.
 
The Bears will cap a seven-game home stand this weekend as the Bears welcome Evansville to town in MVC action. Due to the projected forecast, MSU and Evansville will play a doubleheader on Saturday, March 25 beginning at 2 p.m. CT. The series will conclude with a single game on Sunday, March 26 with first pitch set for 12 p.m. CT.