(Warrensburg, Mo.) – The Central Missouri Jennies softball team split a doubleheader with Truman State, dropping its first conference game of the season. The Jennies fell 3-0 in the opener and won 6-2 in the second contest on Saturday afternoon at Jennies Field.
      Junior Katie Groves led the UCM offense with an .800 batting average, going 4-of-5 from the plate. She had a double, RBI, two walks, and two runs scored on the day. Freshman Braylyn Bivens tallied three hits, one double, a run scored and two stolen bases. With those two stolen bases today, Bivens moves into a tie for seventh on the all-time season record list.
      Central Missouri (20-12, 5-1 MIAA) allowed eight hits in each game today, tallying only 15. The Jennies left 17 base runners on to Truman State stranding 13. Each team turned a double play.
      The Jennies will hit the road, heading to Emporia State on April 5. First pitch of the conference doubleheader is slated for 3 p.m. from Emporia, Kan.
 
Game 1: Jennies 0, Truman State 3
      The game remained scoreless until Truman State sent a pair across the plate in the fourth and then added one more in the fifth. Central Missouri had five runners to third base, twice with the bases loaded, but couldn't get that clutch hit.
      Truman State started the fourth with a solo home run and then added another one later in the frame on a RBI single. Then in the fifth, TSU scored from second off a single.
      The Jennies had the bases loaded in the fifth and seventh, both times with two outs.
      Groves went 3-of-3 in the game, second time this season she has record three hits in a contest. Bivens, senior Kelli Kurka, and sophomore Brandi Campbell each collected one hit.
      Sophomore Megan Schallom suffered the loss, going 4.0 innings. She gave up two runs off five hits, walking two batters and striking out two. Sophomore Sarah Espy threw the final 3.0 innings of relief, giving up one run off three hits. She also walked one and struck out four.
 
Game 2: Jennies 6, Truman State 2
      Central Missouri scored three times in the first inning and never looked back. The Jennies added two more in the second before giving up one in the top of the third. UCM came back with one of its own in the bottom half of the frame. Truman State tacked on one in the sixth.
      With runners on second and third and one out, the Jennies scored its first run on a TSU pass ball. Later Kurka collected a RBI with a single to right center before scoring on an error that gave UCM its third run of the first inning.
      In the second frame, with a runner on second base and two outs, Groves singled to plate the runner and put the Jennies up 4-0. Martin then singled that scored Groves from second.
      After getting two outs in the bottom of the third, freshman Brittany Rozier stepped up for a RBI single and gave the Jens their sixth run of the game.
      The Bulldogs scored in the third on a single after UCM committed an error. Later in the sixth frame, TSU scored with back-to-back doubles.
      Bivens tallied a team-high two hits in the game, scoring once and stealing two bases. Groves scored two of the Jennies six runs in the contest.
      Senior Jamin Landreth recorded her fifth victory of the season, throwing the whole game. She scattered eight hits, striking out four.