SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Indiana State softball fell 2-0 in the series finale against Missouri State on a windy Sunday afternoon at Killian Stadium.

The Bears move to 16-14 overall and 9-3 in the MVC with the weekend sweep while the Sycamores fall to 18-17 with a 5-7 MVC record.

Missouri State got a runner aboard with a two-out double in the first but Lexi Benko was able to get a strikeout to strand the Bears at second and end the inning.

In the bottom of the second, the Bears got a run on an RBI single to go up 1-0. The Sycamores got out of the inning on the play, throwing the Missouri State runner out at second trying to advance on the throw to the plate.

A sacrifice fly in the bottom of the third got another run home for the Bears following a leadoff triple to make it a 2-0 game in favor of Missouri State.

Isabella Henning was hit by a pitch in the top of the fourth inning, marking the first baserunner of the day for the Sycamores. Cassie Thomerson would end the no-hit bid with a double to right field in the fifth inning.

Hailey Griffin entered to pitch with one out in the bottom of the sixth, replacing Benko who went 5 1/3 innings, allowing just two runs on five hits. Griffin got a pair of pop ups to end the inning.

Indiana State got a pair of base hits in the seventh but a Bears double play negated any threat of scoring to help secure the victory for Missouri State.

Lexi Benko falls to 9-9 on the season with the loss.

The Sycamores finished the game with three hits, one apiece from Henning, Siwek and Thomerson.

The all-time series against Missouri State is now 71-29 in favor of the Bears.

Around the Horn
-Indiana State's offense remains ranked second among MVC teams with a .274 average and 252 hits.

-Lexie Siwek was the Sycamores best hitter over the weekend, going 5-for-10 with a pair of multi-hit performances. She raised her season average to .337 (34-for-101).

-The Sycamores now have 20 home runs as a team after Amanda Guercio and Annie Tokarek went deep over the weekend.

-Indiana State now sits in a tie for fifth in the MVC standings with five series remaining against Drake, Evansville, Loyola, Southern Illinois and UNI.

Up Next
Indiana State will be on the road Tuesday night for a non-conference matchup at Illinois then return home to host Drake for a three-game series beginning with a doubleheader on Friday.

For the latest information on Sycamore Softball, be sure to visit GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media, including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.