FULTON, Mo.- The William Woods baseball team is the No. 3 seed in the American Midwest Conference Tournament in Springfield, Ill, and will take on No. 2 seed Lyon College tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. in the Quarterfinals.
The Owls (27-15, 20-8 AMC) got the No. 3 seed by winning 15 of their final 16 games on the schedule, including winning 12 in a row, as the streak started when the Owls defeated Park University 26-16 in their weekend series finale. The team then went on to sweep Hannibal-LaGrange, Lindenwood-Belleville, Williams Baptist and took three from Lyon College.
The two teams met just last weekend and the Owls took care of business, winning three out of the four games against the then No. 16 Lyon Scots by a combined score of 24-14. The offense batted 0.265 in the four game series, led by
Ryan Sweet batting 0.600 (6-for-10), with three doubles and three RBI.
Jacob Harrison batted 0.364 (4-for-11) in four game played, scoring four times, adding one triple and leading the team in RBI with four. Greg Hamrock (0.333),
Eilert Meyers (0.333), and
Stephen Kohler (0.308) were the other hitters contributing an average above 0.300.
The pitching staff held a 3.38 ERA against the Scots, with
Jeremy Ahillen holding a perfect 0.00 ERA in his start where he ended up receiving a no decision.
John Cavness held a 2.84 ERA in his game three victory, throwing six one/third innings pitched, allowing two runs on eight hits while striking out six. Reliever
Matt Thomas had a strong showing against Lyon, keeping a perfect 0.00 ERA, picking up a victory in game one and earning a save in game three.
William Woods handed Lyon College their longest losing streak on the season at three and won more than one game against the Scots, which no other team in the American Midwest Conference had done all season.
Players To Look Out For (William Woods)
The offense batted 0.325 on the season, with Greg Hamrock (0.430),
Stephen Kohler (0.424) and
Ryan Sweet (0.417) each batting over 0.400. Hamrock led the conference with his 0.430 average, leading the team in hits (55), doubles (14), and tied for the team lead in total bases (69). Kohler holds the second best average in the conference, adding 23 RBI.
The duo of Hamrock and Kohler have been a thorn in the side for opposing pitching staff's at the top of the order, as they have combined for 108 hits, 70 runs scored, 20 doubles, one triple and 43 RBI.
Nichols has provided the power for the Owls as of late, batting 0.376 on the season, with 11 doubles, leading the team in runs scored with 38, home runs with four and RBI adding 41. He also holds the top slugging percentage for the team at 0.590.
Justin Elmore (0.375),
Jacob Harrison (0.359) and
Matt Thomas (0.327) all batted over 0.320 on the year, contributing at least 10 RBI and 15 runs scored.
On the mound, the Owls are led by starter
Adam Brush, having a 2.84 ERA through 10 games played (nine started), to go along with a 6-3 record through 57 innings pitched and a K/BB ratio of 53/25.
Jeremy Ahillen (2.93) and
Dane Smith (3.35), both hold an ERA under 3.50 and have amassed at least three wins this season, as they will be looked upon to pitch well in the tournament.
Matt Thomas has been solid in relief with a 1.27 ERA, 3-1 record in 14 games played and a conference high seven saves.
Players To Keep An Eye Out For (Lyon College)
The Scots (40-12, 22-6 AMC), have a 0.315 team batting average and are led by Colby Rogers, hitting 0.382 (66-for-173) in 52 games played, scoring 44 times, adding 23 doubles, three home runs, 48 RBI and 100 total bases. Jim Gossett will be another player to keep an eye out for, as he is hitting 0.358 (44-for-123) with five doubles and 27 RBI. Bryan Lynn is hitting 0.339 and leads the team in home runs with five. Roger Glaude (0.342), Joseph Sitzman (0.333) and Kris Kohlstedt (0.310) all are contact hitters for the Scots and could make an impact in Friday's game.
The pitching staff has four different starters with at least seven wins, three of which have eight. Ben Neyen leads the starters with an 8-3 record, 2.35 ERA and a K/BB ratio of 64/28 through 72 2/3 innings pitched. Talan Roepcke is 7-3 on the season through 12 games started and has pitched the second most amount of innings for the Scots at 74 2/3. Brenden Camp holds a 3.52 ERA and is 8-1 on the season, while Brandon Haller is the other Lyon starter with eight victories to go along with a 3.95 ERA.
The Owls did face Roepcke in game one, Haller in game two, and Neyen in game three with WWU all handing each starter a loss. Camp was the lone Scot starter to defeat William Woods, but only lasted four one/third innings, allowing three runs on seven hits and didn't strike out any batters.
Both offenses are ranked 1-2 in the American Midwest Conference, with the Owls batting 0.325 and Lyon being right behind them batting 0.315 on the season. Lyon leads the conference in runs scored with 373 (7.17) in 52 games played, while William Woods who has played in 10 less games, has still scored 293 runs (6.98) which is second in the AMC.
This will be an exciting showdown against two of the top three teams in the conference. To view the entire AMC bracket visit
HERE.
