JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - The Truman softball team played its first games in the state of Missouri on Tuesday afternoon, and didn't disappoint. The Bulldogs rolled past Lincoln in a two-game road sweep thanks to scores of 11-5 and 7-0 at the brand new LU Softball Field.

Truman snapped a two-game skid to get back to .500 overall at 5-5 while Lincoln has lost eight in a row to start its 2017 campaign. For the day, Christa Reisinger and Valerie Schmidt each went 4-of-6 at the dish while the three Bulldog pitchers gave up a combined five earned runs in 13 innings pitched for a 2.69 ERA.

In the top of the first of game one, Ashley Murphy put Truman ahead 1-0 with a sacrifice fly to right field that brought in Reisinger. After Lincoln took a one-run lead of its own in the home half, 2-1, the Bulldogs bit back with four more in the second, five in the fifth and had a comfortable eight-run advantage, 10-2, heading to the bottom of the fifth. During that span, Schmidt and Reisinger were each responsible for two RBI, Riley Cook pushed four across the plate and Murphy had a two-run single to left center for runs No. 9 and 10.

After the home team made it 10-3 in the fifth, Truman's 11th and final run came in the top of the sixth when Michaela Mooney scored Jamie Fowle with a sacrifice fly to left. The Blue Tigers tacked on two in the sixth, but it was too little, too late. In the circle for the Bulldogs, Lauren Dale (3-1) went five innings and gave up three earned runs on seven hits with one walk and two strikeouts. In relief, Alyssa Hajduk surrendered two earned on four hits with two free passes and three punchouts.

In the nightcap, it was much of the same on offense as Truman scored seven runs on nine hits before the game was called with one out in the top of the seventh due to darkness. In the second inning, Schmidt got the party started with an RBI double to center and Reisinger followed suit with a run-scoring single, also to center.

The scoring continued in the sixth for the Bulldogs when Reisinger forced in a run on a hit by pitch, Haley Wells singled in a pair and Murphy made it 7-0 with a base knock to right that scored both Reisinger and Wells. Those seven runs were more than enough for Nicolette Simpson (2-2), who was brilliant all night. The junior transfer gave up just one hit in six innings with only one walk and four strikeouts. That effort lowered Simpson's season ERA to 3.44 in 20 and a third innings pitched.

Next up, Truman will compete in the Midwest Region Crossover with four games in two days on Feb. 25-26 in Evansville, Ind.

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