Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 FULTON, Mo.—The (RV) William Woods University softball team dominated in its American Midwest Conference home opener, defeating Benedictine University at Springfield 8-1 in game one and 14-1 in game two (five innings).
William Woods University 8 Benedictine-Springfield 1
The Owls (13-8; 2-0 AMC), jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first, as
Lindsey LeCuru doubled to left-center, bringing home
Kacey Scharnhorst, who reached base with a two-out single earlier in the inning. Freshman
Beth Begemann followed that up with a single to center, which scored
Lindsey LeCuru from second base, which put the team up by two.
William Woods would tally two more runs on three hits in the bottom of the second inning, getting an RBI from
Hannah Campbell, while
Julie Scheer stole home, to take a 4-0 lead after two innings of play.
That lead was more than enough for senior hurler
MacKenzie Bowden, who in her complete game outing, allowed one run (zero earned) on three hits and struck out 14 Bulldogs. This is the third straight game that the Hartsburg, Mo., native has tallied at least 14 strikeouts in a game.
BenU-Springfield (5-10; 0-2 AMC), was able to get on the board in the top of the fourth and cut the lead down to 4-1, as Monica DeVault hit a sacrifice fly to right, that scored pinch-runner Erin Davis.
The Owls, however, responded by scoring two more runs in the fourth and fifth innings, cruising to a seven run victory in front of the home crowd.
The offense totaled 10 hits in the game, with
Lindsey LeCuru, Begemann,
Megan Cooper and Scheer each having two hits in the game, while also combining for five runs scored and four RBI.
William Woods University 14 Benedictine-Springfield 1 (5 innings)
In game two, the offense continued to roll, totaling 14 runs on 15 hits, with 12 different Owls having at least one hit in the game.
The team held a 3-1 lead after two innings of play, and then exploded for seven runs on five hits in the top of the third. Begemann led the third off with a single to right, and advanced to second after a sacrifice bunt by Scheer.
After a strikeout,
Sam Parsons singled to center, putting runners on the corners for
Grace Fritz. Parsons then stole second and was able to score along with Begemann on Frtiz's single to center, putting the team up 5-1. Campbell and
Shelby LeCuru then reached base on back-to-back walks, loading up the bases for
Kacey Scharnhorst.
The junior ripped a triple down the right field line, clearing the bases and putting the Owls ahead 8-1. The team wasn't done there, as senior
Lindsey LeCuru came to the plate and ripped her team leading fourth home run over the left field wall, extending the Owls advantage up to nine runs.
WWU would go on to add another run in the fourth and tally three more in the fifth to go on for the 13-run victory in five innings.
Senior
Becca Schemmer picked up her fourth victory on the season, throwing five innings of two-hit ball, allowing one run (zero earned) and struck out two.
The offense was led by Scharnhorst going 2-for-2 with one run scored and a team-high four RBI. Fritz had an impressive game in the No. 9 spot, going 2-for-2 with one run scored and three RBI, while Parsons was the final Owl with two hits, going 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Freshman
Madison McCormick finished the game 1-for-2 and totaled her first RBI in her collegiate career, having two.
The team has a quick turnaround, as they are back in action tomorrow afternoon for doubleheader action at Hannibal-LaGrange University (7-10; 0-2 AMC). First-pitch begins at 2 p.m.
The Lady Trojans had their first AMC games today as well, but fell to Park University 8-2 in game one and 13-0 in game two, which snapped the team's two-game winning streak.
HLG's offense is batting .267, led by Taylor Lewis hitting a team-high .422 (19-for-45) with 10 runs scored two doubles, one home run, six RBI and a slugging percentage of .533. Kelli Black is second on the team with a .351 average, while Abby Garcia holds a .265 average, but leads the team with 11 RBI.
Katy Atkins leads the pitching staff with a 0.94 ERA in four starts (2-3), allowing just 10 runs (five earned) in 29 2/3 innings and has struck out 28 batters. Bobbi Henderson is also off to an impressive start on the mound, having a 0.98 ERA in three starts (1-2), and has struck out 18 batters, while Melissa Stenborg has the most wins on the season (4) in seven starts, having a 2.85 ERA in 34 1/3 innings and has 10 strikeouts.
Fans check back with wwuowls.com tomorrow evening for a full recap and score from Hannibal, Mo.
