JOPLIN, Mo. – Augustana softball earned a hard-fought split Thursday at Missouri Southern in Joplin, Missouri. The Vikings fell in the day's first game, 3-2, while bouncing back in game two, 12-8.
 
Augustana is now 13-8 on the season while Missouri Southern is 20-7.
 
Game One: Missouri Southern 3, Augustana 2
Augustana plated two runs in the second inning after Nicole Bellis led off with a double into center field. Andrea Cain hit a double down the right-field line to score Bellis. Desi Cuevas immediately followed with a single into left field to score Cain and the 2-0 advantage.
 
In the bottom of the third, Missouri Southern cut the score in half as they had an unearned run cross home plate.
 
An unlucky bounce for AU in the bottom of the fifth gave the Lions the lead at 3-2. Taylor Nuckolls hit a fly ball into left field. As Cuevas made a dive to try and make a spectacular play, the ball bounced and with the strong winds, carried the ball through center field and into right field allowing Nuckolls to circle the bases with a runner on.
 
Augustana recorded eight hits in the game with a 3-for-3 day from Cain. Ashton Dorman and Nicole Bellis each tallied a pair of hits as well for AU.
 
Grace Glanzer tossed four innings, allowing just a single unearned run while Lexi Lander threw the final two innings with the unlucky loss attached to her record.
 
Game Two: Augustana 12, Missouri Southern 8
After falling behind 1-0 in the first, the game was all Augustana with three runs scored in the second and third innings, four in the fourth and another two in the fifth.
 
Augustana's first two runs of the game were from a double off the bat of Ashton Dorman which pushed Torri Chute and Gracey Brink across home plate. Dorman was then brought home on a Stella Harber groundout to make the score 3-1.
 
The three runs in the third were courtesy of a Kennedy Buckman double, Chute single and Dorman single.
 
In the four-run fourth, Liz Dierks scored on a triple from Andrea Cain. Cain was then brought home on a double by Desi Cuevas.
 
Cuevas touched home plate courtesy of a Chute single. The 10^th run of the game was scored on another Dorman double, this time to score Gracey Brink.
 
On Cain's second hit of the game, she singled in Ella Cooper to make the score 11-2. Two batters later, Cain scampered home on a throwing error from a flyout to right field.
 
While bracing for impending weather, and sitting through two weather delays, the home team attempted to make a comeback and pushed four runs across in the bottom of the fifth. After a weather delay, Missouri Southern again plated runs, this time a pair of runs, prior to yet another weather delay in the bottom of the seventh.
 
After the all-clear, Lexi Lander stuck out the side for the 12-8 Vikings' win.
 
Augustana piled up 15 hits for the 12 runs with three each from Cuevas and Dorman while Dorman collected four RBI. Cain, Chute and Dierks each tallied multi-hit games for AU as part of the 15 hits.
 
Hailey Houston earned the victory in the circle, pitching six innings. Lander totaled three strikeouts in her one inning of relief.
 
Up Next
Augustana faces No. 11 Central Oklahoma Friday at Pittsburg, Kansas, as part of the NSIC/MIAA Crossover. First pitch is slated for 10 a.m. of the doubleheader.