Free State softball coach Lee Ice knows his squad is close to stringing together some victories.

“Right now, we need to gain some confidence and find ways to win instead of finding ways to get beat,” Ice said after the Firebirds dropped a pair of close contests, 4-3 (8 innings) and 12-10, on Tuesday at Shawnee Mission North.

The Firebirds actually led, 10-4, in Game 2 going into the fifth inning. The Indians rallied for seven runs in the fifth, however.

“They hit the ball really well, and we couldn’t make plays,” Ice said. “The inning got away from us.”

Free State fell to 2-6. The Firebirds will play host to Olathe South in a makeup game at 6 p.m. on Thursday in a doubleheader.