SPRINGFIELD, Mo. ? Missouri State first baseman Ashley Knehans broke a scoreless tie with an RBI double in the bottom of the fourth inning, sparking the Bears to a 5-1 win and a Missouri Valley Conference series sweep over Bradley Sunday afternoon in Springfield, Mo.

Bradley (11-15 overall, 3-9 MVC) junior starting pitcher Ashley Birdsong (Otis, Ore./Taft H.S.) didn't allow a hit in the contest until Missouri State's Elysha Swider led off the fourth inning with a single to center field. After a sacrifice bunt moved Swider to second base, Knehans doubled to left-center field to score Swider for a 1-0 lead. The Bears added run-scoring hits from Jenna Schwark and Brooke Kempker to stretch the lead to 3-0 before a strikeout ended the inning.

After the Bears (19-11, 8-6 MVC) extended their lead to 5-0 in the fifth inning, the Braves scratched a run across in the top half of the sixth. Junior Miriam Wegmann (St. Louis, Mo./Oakville H.S.) started the frame with a double to right-center. Two batters later, pinch runner Katy Dammer (Tinley Park, Ill./Lincoln-Way East H.S.) scored on an RBI single from junior Alycia Bachkora (Overland Park, Kan./Notre Dame de Sion) to trim the deficit to 5-1. The Braves would not get any closer, ending the inning with a popout and a groundout.

Sophomore outfielder Amanda Clack (Hillsboro, Mo./Hillsboro H.S.) went 2-for-3, ending the three-game series with six hits in nine trips to the plate to bump her season average up to .313. Bachkora added a fifth inning double but was stranded at third base.

Birdsong took the loss, allowing all five runs to fall below the .500 mark for the first time this season at 8-9. She struck out five over 4.2 innings. Senior Rebecca Bishop (Carmichael, Calif./Del Campo H.S.) pitched 1.1 scoreless innings in relief.

The Braves will return home for a midweek doubleheader with Illinois on Wednesday at 5 p.m. at the Eastside Centre in East Peoria. BU will resume MVC play with a doubleheader against Illinois State on Saturday, April 12, at Laura Bradley Park.