DENTON, Texas - Courtney Bingham matched a career high with four hits as Midwestern State ripped Texas-Permian Basin 9-4 in the Best Western Premier Spring Fling Friday night at North Lakes Park.
 
The junior from Arlington capped her night with a double down the left-field line and reaching on three straight singles to match her mark set against Southeastern Oklahoma and Missouri Southern earlier this month to up her season average to a cool .511.
 
The Mustangs, who improved to 9-5 on the season, continue tournament play Saturday with games against Central Missouri at 11:30 a.m. and St. Edward's (Texas) at 4:30 p.m.
 
MSU jumped out to an early 3-0 lead scoring runs off of a Kim Jerrick sacrifice fly, a Kelley Schaefer double and a Courtney Ford single in the first inning.
 
The Mustangs added another run in the second when Nicki Duff came plate ward on an RBI-single by Bingham before the Falcons rallied with three runs in the third.
 
But freshman starter Lindsi Glenn settled in to allow just one unearned the rest of the way to improve to 8-4 on the season while allowing four runs - three earned - on eight hits with three strikeouts and a walk to notch her ninth complete game of the campaign.
 
The Mustangs salted the game away with an unearned run in the fourth before frosh Lisa Licata and Elena Bennett drove in runs in the fifth inning to push the lead to 7-3.
 
Senior third baseman Mallory Mooney drove in two more insurance runs with a double to the left-field gap in the seventh.
 
Bennett added her fourth three-hit game of the season as the Mustangs legged out 17 hits for the second this season. The junior from Carrollton scored two runs, drove in another and stole her 14th base of the season.
 
Jerrick and Duff had two hits each as MSU upped its team batting average to .368.
 
Bailie Summers took the loss for UTPB to fall to 0-1 on the season allowing seven runs on 14 hits in four innings, while Anna Hollingsworth led the Falcons' order by going 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs.
 
Former Wichita Falls City View High standout Tomie Ellard was 0-for-2, but recorded two putouts in left field for Texas-Permian Basin.
 
The Falcons dropped to 2-14.