FULTON, Mo. -- After a solid road trip that saw the Owls post a 4-2 record including a dominating sweep of Columbia College, the William Woods University softball team returns home for a pair of doubleheaders this week. First up on the slate is Missouri Valley College, with first pitch set for 4:30 p.m. The doubleheader will also include a special senior day recognition between the contests, as WWU honors five seniors who conclude their careers in Burgundy and Forest Green this year.

Quick Look - William Woods
The Owls bring a team batting average of .275 into the doubleheader, with newly-crowned AMC Player of the Week Lindsey LeCuru leapfrogging early-season leader Caroline Sicht for the individual lead by the slimmest of margins - one one-thousandth of a point - with an average of .357 on the season. LeCuru also laid claim to the team's top slugging percentage in last Friday's doubleheader against Columbia, cranking back-to-back home runs in the first and second innings of the nightcap. She has collected 4 HR, a triple and a team-best 14 doubles on the campaign for a slugging mark of .607. Sicht has been slightly more productive with her 37 hits, driving in a team-high 25 RBI for the Owls, with seven doubles, a triple and a pair of dingers. Ilissa Facchini leads the team with an on-base percentage of .518 and leads the league with 28 walks on the year, nearly double that of her next-nearest competition - WBC's Tori Henson - and she's added 15 sacrifice hits on the year as well. Kelsey Schulte has also been solid at the plate, with a .316 average and three home runs among her 37 hits. She's also hit a team-best four triples on the year. Schulte and LeCuru are both ranked nationally , with Schulte holding the 20th-most triples in NAIA Division I and LeCuru ranked 19th for doubles.

The Owls are strong from the pitching circle as well, with a pair of pitchers boasting sub 2.0 ERAs on the year with a team mark of 2.04. MacKenzie Bowden and Kelsey Schulte both boast ERAs of 1.56 - tied for 44th in the country - although Schulte just edges out Bowden in innings pitched. Bowden boasts the better overall record, however, with a 9-4 mark - adding two saves - to Schulte's 8-5 record. Bowden has shown some wicked control this year, striking out 120 batters - 20th-most in the country - with her strikeouts per nine innings pace of 12.71 the fifth-highest overall. Not to be lost in the shuffle is Becca Schemmer, who also holds a 5-3 record on the year.

As a staff, the owls allow just a .229 average for opposing hitters, with Bowden's mark of .184 good for 30th-best in the NAIA.

Defensively, the Owls are solid, recording 20.629 putouts per game - sixth-most in the nation - and the 35th-best fielding percentage in the country at .960. WWU has been charged with just 41 errors in 1031 chances. The Owls have also been awesome defending the basepaths, allowing just 13 steals in 31 attempts on the year.

Today's Seniors
#12, Mariah Danison is majoring in exercise science with a minor in sports management. She is joined today by her parents, Rob and Gail Danison.

#1, Whitney Eufinger is an art education major and is the daughter of the late Robert and the late Norma Eufinger. She is escorted today by her brother, Matt Eufinger.

#9, Kristy Pluchinski is majoring in communications with an education minor. She is escorted today by her parents, John and Teresa Pluchinski.

#8, Carinda Schulte is an athletic training major, and she is joined today by her parents David and Josette Schulte, her husband Jared Steele and daughter Raelynn Steele.

#13, Kelsey Schulte is a double major - exercise science and sport management, adding a double minor in Management Information Systems and coaching. She is escorted today by her parents, Ronette and Craig Schulte.

Seven Innings. No More, No Less
On the 2012 season, the Owls are a perfect 11-0 in games that don't last the regulation seven innings. WWU is a perfect 5-0 in extra-inning contests, highlighted by an exciting 2-1 win over Baker in 10 innings. However, the Owls have also compiled a perfect 6-0 record in shortened contests, winning five games by mercy rule and one due to weather while never suffering a mercy reversal.

Live Stats Available
In addition to live video for when you're not able to make it to the games, live stats are available for all William Woods University softball games. Launch http://wwuowls.com/SB_LiveStats in your smartphone browser for full details of the games as they happen, including play-by-play, in-game performance and previous plate appearance tracking.

Think Pink
Thursday's game against Stephens College is our annual “Think Pink” event. In additon to providing free food for the doubleheader, the William Woods University office of Student Life is raising money to benefit the Susan G. Komen Foundation by selling T-Shirts commemorating the event. Shirts are $10 and are available at Student Life, or by emailing LeaAnn.Knaebel@williamwoods.edu.