TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Becky Malchow went 2-for-3 with an RBI and hit her third career triple as Indiana State swept Saturday's Missouri Valley Conference doubleheader over Valparaiso with a 7-4 win at Price Field.
 
Half of the Sycamores' eight hits were for extra bases in the game as Indiana State (14-10, 2-0) used powerful bats and fast runners from the very start.
 
It began in the first inning when Bailey Martin was awarded home on an obstruction call. The Trees tacked on three more runs in the third inning behind a Brooke Mann RBI double, a Bella Peterson sac fly and a wild pitch.
 
Valparaiso (12-10, 0-2), picked ahead of the Sycamores in the league's preseason poll, hit two home runs with a double sandwiched in between in the top of the fourth. But ISU would respond in the bottom half of the inning with three more runs that were critical in keeping the game out of reach. The Crusaders would threaten in the top of the seventh with a solo home run followed by a single but Arielle Blankenship (6-2) clinched her sixth win of the year by forcing Lanie Callaghan to ground out to end the game.
 
The three-game Missouri Valley Conference series – Valpo's first since joining the league over the past offseason – concludes with a Noon first pitch on Sunday at Price Field.
 
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Becky Malchow gets the nod with her 2-for-3 three performance, driving in a run and scoring once herself. She ripped a triple off the right field wall – her third career three-bagger – as she was one of four Sycamores with an extra-base hit in the game.
 
STAT OF THE GAME
Zero. That's how many stolen bases Valparaiso's Taylor Lawson recorded across both games Saturday. The Crusader senior entered the weekend leading The Valley and ranked seventh nationally in stolen bases.
 
PITCHERS OF RECORD

• Win: Arielle Blankenship, Indiana State (6-2)
• Loss: Emily Richardson, Valparaiso (2-1)
• Save: None

RECORDS UPDATE

• Indiana State: 14-10 (2-0 MVC)
• Valparaiso: 12-10 (0-2 MVC)

NOTABLES

• Indiana State now leads the all-time series over Valparaiso, 10-2. The Sycamores have won 10 straight in the series.
• The Trees have clinched a conference-opening series victory for just the third time in the last 10 years.
• Becky Malchow's third career triple brings her within two of the top-10 all-time charts at Indiana State. She is one triple behind Shaye Barton (4), who ranks 11^th in career triples.

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