DALLAS (Interstat) — Missouri State’s pitching staff delivered a dominant collective performance, allowing just two hits, to lead the Bears to an 8-2 victory over Dallas Baptist in a Conference USA baseball game Saturday afternoon at Ellis Davis Field House.

The win, which evened the weekend series after a one-run loss Friday, improved Missouri State to 17-8 overall and dropped Dallas Baptist to 15-12.

The most critical sequence of the game occurred in the middle innings, transforming a tight contest into a comfortable Bears lead. Holding a 2-1 advantage entering the fifth, Missouri State broke through against Dallas Baptist starter Jared Schaeffer. Pinch-hitter Bobby Atkinson was hit by a pitch and Logan Fyffe singled, setting the stage for Gabe Roessler. The left fielder laced a two-run double down the left-field line, scoring both runners to extend the lead to 4-1. That chased Schaeffer, who took the loss after surrendering two runs on two hits over 4 2/3 innings.

Missouri State’s bullpen then slammed the door, combining for 6 2/3 hitless innings. Owen Slater started and worked four innings, allowing both Dallas Baptist runs on two hits. The Patriots scored in the first on an RBI single by Cooper Neville and added a run in the third on a double-steal attempt that resulted in a caught stealing but allowed a run to score.

From there, the Bears’ relievers were untouchable. Brock Lucas, the first man out of the pen, threw 2 1/3 perfect innings with two strikeouts to earn the win. Max Knight followed with 1 1/3 hitless innings, and Tyler Charlton closed it out with 1 1/3 perfect innings, striking out three of the four batters he faced. Dallas Baptist’s final 19 batters of the game failed to record a hit.

Missouri State, which finished with 10 hits, added insurance late. In the eighth, Atkinson doubled home a run and Fyffe followed with a sacrifice fly to make it 6-2. The Bears put the game out of reach with a three-run ninth, highlighted by a two-run single from Knight and a sacrifice bunt from Roessler, who finished with three RBIs. Atkinson, who entered as a pinch-hitter, went 1-for-1 with two RBIs and a walk.

The victory defied pregame projections from Interstat, whose ELO system gave Dallas Baptist a 69.2 percent probability to win, though the final score matched the simulator’s run total for Missouri State.

The two teams conclude the three-game series Sunday afternoon.