FULTON, Mo. -- Overcoming adversity and obstacles are normally the calling card of a championship team. And those traits perfectly describe those of the William Woods University softball team in capturing its second American Midwest Conference Tournament title in three years.
It wasn't a storybook regular season for the Owls, as injuries would amount and rain outs would amass during the first month of the season. In fact, William Woods did not even play in the state of Missouri over the first month because of snow and rain; its first home game came on Mar. 23 against the Park University Pirates to open the 2013 AMC season.
WWU had fared well away from campus, as head coach Tracy Gastineau put her team through a rigorous schedule that saw her team play six games against teams who would end up playing in the NAIA National Tournament.
The Owls were able to come out of the opening month at an even 6-6, including a win over then no 1. Cal State San Marcos, going into the conference portion of their schedule. The conference season did not go as expected over the team's first six games, as they amassed a 1-5 record, including being no-hit by Park University.
“We hit a lull,” said Gastineau. “We weren't doing anything particularly well. Taking nothing away from the teams who we played, (Park, Columbia College, and Hannibal-LaGrange) but our play wasn't very good to start the conference season.”
Gastineau's team showed some resiliency by winning 12 of their next 13 games, including a win against no. 5 Williams Baptist College, defeating AMC Pitcher of the Year Karissa Hendrix. The Owls finished the regular season with a record of 19-13 and 12-6 in AMC to earn the fourth seed in the conference tournament.
“You have to credit our girls for sticking with it during the 1-5 start. We overcame a lot of adversity this season and it helps to have that experience with you going into the postseason. We play in a game of failure, so you are going to fail, but we were failing in all aspects of the game during the first half of the season, but we stuck to it, and we knew we could play and defeat some of the top teams in the country. So we worked hard and the effort and character of this team paid off.”
The toughness of this team was put to the test in the opening round of the AMC Tournament against Hannibal-LaGrange. William Woods dropped game one at home against the Lady Trojans 7-2 on their home field.
Faced with elimination the Owl's Becca Schemmer turned in one of her best performances of the season by no-hitting the Lady Trojans in game two, forcing a deciding game three. And on the next day, Gastineau went back to Schemmer who spread out five hits over seven innings in a 1-0 win to move to the AMC Final Four.
In the Final Four William Woods had to get wins against the top three seeds, all of who WWU went a combined 1-5 on the year against. In fitting fashion, the tournament had been postponed two days in a row because of rain, and the forecast was not looking good to even get the tournament in. But thankfully Mother Nature cooperated on Saturday and Sunday allowing the teams to get the games in.
The Owls had to face-off with top-seeded Williams Baptist first. WWU prevented the Lady Eagles from a perfect AMC regular season by defeating WBC in 8 innings off of Lindsey LeCuru's walk-off home run just 12 days earlier.
In this epic dual between the conference's top two pitchers, it was MacKenzie Bowden who would out last Hendrix by striking out 13 in a 2-1 eighth inning win, moving the Owls to the winner's side of the bracket to face rival Columbia College.
William Woods took care of the Cougars 4-3, putting them just one win away from the AMC Championship, the only team to stand in its way was the Park University Pirates, who no-hit the Owls at home earlier this season.
WWU got its redemption against Park, as a pair of home runs by Lindsey LeCuru and Macy Wierschem sparked the Owls to a 7-0 win, earning the school's second AMC Tournament title in three years.
Now, William Woods will go to Jackson, Miss., to play in a quadrant of no. 8 Reinhardt College, no. 13 Belhaven University and LSU Alexandria. The Owls, who ended the season receiving votes in the NAIA Coaches Poll, will have to defeat some of the top teams in the nation in order to advance in the tournament.
Gastineau believe that the tough schedule and overcoming the adversity that her team had to over the season will help on the national stage. William Woods will face three tough schools in Mississippi, including two top 15-ranked schools, but as an old saying goes 'Anything can happen in the postseason.'
William Woods will first take on no. 13-ranked Belhaven University at 2 p.m. on Monday afternoon. Fans who want to follow the Owls can do so by clicking here.
