FULTON, Mo.- The William Woods University baseball team will be looking to putting a halt to their four game losing streak against Benedictine-Springfield, after the Owls were swept in a weekend series against No. 17 Missouri Baptist.
Last Time Out
After sweeping their series home opener against Harris-Stowe, the Owls (9-11, 5-5 AMC) traveled to Missouri Baptist, whom at the time was just one game ahead of William Woods in the American Midwest Conference standings.
The Spartans swept the four game series over WWU, out-scoring them 19-8 in the process. The team committed eight errors in the weekend series, four of which came in the finale where the team lost 6-2. The Owls held the lead only twice, having a 1-0 lead early in games two and three, but couldn't hold down the Spartan offense that batted .257 in four games.
As a team, the Owls batted .196 (21-for-107), had a slugging percentage of .252, 27 total bases and an on base percentage of .315. The pitching staff didn't fare much better, having a team ERA of 5.14, compared to the Spartan pitchers earning a 1.97 ERA.
Matt Thomas was a bright spot for the offense hitting .417 (5-for-12), with three doubles and two RBI.
Zach Nichols hit a solid .364 (4-for-11), with two runs scored and hit his first home run on the season in game four.
Starter
Adam Brush was the lone pitcher all weekend to throw past five innings (6.0 innings pitched), and the ace of the staff did not have his best stuff, as he allowed six walks in game one to go along with the four runs allowed (three earned). Brush, however, did hold the Spartan batting average to a low .182 batting average in those six innings.
Benedictine-Springfield (7-10 , 4-4 AMC), is coming off a 3-1 weekend series record against Park University, winning game one, two and four by a combined score of 11-4. On the final day of the series, the Pirates snapped the Bulldogs three game winning streak, taking game three 6-0, however, Benedictine responded in game four with an impressive pitching performance by Tristan Molumby who threw six innings of shut-out ball, allowing two hits, two walks and striking out six Park hitters.
Dalton Doerfler came on in relief and hurled three innings of one hit ball and struck out four Pirates, keeping the shutout intact. The Bulldog offense totaled eight hits in game four, led by third baseman Tommy Jennings going 2-for-4 with two RBI. Zane Dillon also added two hits on the afternoon at the leadoff position.
Owls Look Too Stay Undefeated at Home
This will be the second time the Owls get to play at home, as in their home opener against Harris-Stowe, the Owls went 4-0 against the Hornets and made a big jump up into third place in the AMC at the time. Last season, the team played very well on their own home turf, going 16-4 and look to continue to play well at home in conference play. The team travels only twice on the road the rest of the season in AMC play, as they will head to Williams Baptist and Hannibal-LaGrange, otherwise all other conference foes will be coming to William Woods.
Head-to-Head Match-up
Both teams are at the .500 mark in conference play, with the Owls standing in a tie for third place with Hannibal-LaGrange, while Benedictine is in fifth place right behind William Woods, so each team will be looking to get above the .500 mark in not only the AMC, but their overall record as well.
The Owls lead in multiple categories against the Bulldogs, including batting average, RBI, runs scored, hits and doubles. Benedictine has a 4-3 advantage in triples and home runs (7-5), and both teams have the exact same slugging percentage of .389.
Players to Keep an Eye Out For (William Woods)
Greg Hamrock continues to lead the offense through 20 games, as the senior is hitting .439 (25-for-57), with 11 runs scored, six doubles and a slugging percentage of .544. His .439 average places him second in the conference and just two points behind Drew Morecraft of Hannibal-LaGrange.
Zach Nichols is hitting .350 on the year, placing him 17
th in the conference, and is third on the team in RBI adding 10.
Stephen Kohler (.340) and
Jordan Thompson (.304) are both batting over .300 as well, which places them in the top 30 in the conference.
Matt Thomas has been catching fire as of late, moving up his average to .286, after hitting .444 through eight conference games, hitting three home runs in one game against Harris-Stowe and having 20 total bases.
On the hill,
Adam Brush continues to lead the staff with a 1.96 ERA, earning a 4-2 record and having a K/BB ratio of 27/16. His ERA places him fourth in the conference through 36 2/3 innings pitched, and he is holding his opponents' batting average to .194 which is the best in the AMC.
Jeremy Ahillen is second on the team in ERA (2.45) and
Dane Smith is right behind him in third, holding a respectable 2.72. That gives the Owls three starters with an ERA under 3.00, two of which are ranked in the top 10 in the conference, as Smith comes in at no. 7.
Players to Keep an Eye Out For (Benedictine-Springfield)
Brett Jackson is off to a strong start for the Bulldogs, hitting .400 on the year, which places him fifth in the conference. Jackson, leads the team in hits (20), home runs (3), RBI (14), total bases (31) and slugging percentage (.620).
As a team, the Bulldogs are hitting .284, with Sean Fitzgerald (.348), Travis Combs (.333), Drew Johnson (.314) and Tommy Jennings (.302), are the other players batting over .300 in 2013. Combs and Jennings are both hitting the ball wall, combing for four home runs and 18 RBI.
On the mound, Benedictine has a 4.64 team ERA, and they are led by Jordan Pesko with a 1.57 ERA (2-0 record) through four games played, and that is so far the best ERA in the AMC. Lucas Wright is second on the team in ERA with a 2.93 through two games started (1-2 record).
