CLEVELAND, Miss. – Lacey Coats out dueled Nyah Vogel in a stellar pitcher's duel to give Delta State a 2-1 walk off win over the Lee softball on Thursday afternoon to open a three-game Gulf South Conference Series.

The Lady Flames held a 1-0 lead going into the seventh after a sacrifice fly by Janina Remley in the top of the sixth that scored Ana Macha.

Nyah Vogel (5-5) was the tough-luck loser in the circle for the Lady Flames. She allowed three hits and struck out five, but five walks proved costly. In the seventh Vogel walked the first two batters before getting a fielder's choice.

That set the stage for Olivia Burns to deliver the game's lone extra base hit, a double to right center that scored two to send the Lady Statesmen home with the series opening victory.

"We didn't get the result, but we did learn today. We played in a close game on the road in the GSC and should have been able to close it out. We will get better from this experience," said Lee head coach Emily Russell.

Lacey Coats (4-3) earned the win as she gave up just one unearned run and four singles over the full seven innings in the circle. She walked three and struck out one.

The Lady Flames fall to 9-11 overall and are 3-6 in the GSC. Delta State improves to 9-10 and an even 4-4 in league play. The two teams will wrap up the series on Friday with a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m.