PARKVILLE, Mo. -- The William Woods University baseball team travels to Park University on Tuesday for a midweek American Midwest Conference doubleheader. The first game is slated to begin at 1 p.m., with game two following at roughly 3 p.m. at Comfort Field.
William Woods (14-5, 3-3 AMC) is coming off a three-game AMC series against the No. 25-ranked Freed-Hardeman University Lions. The Owls dropped two of three in the set, losing game one 7-6 and game two 7-4, but rallied from an 11-3 deficit, thanks to a nine-run seventh inning, to score a victory in the game's final set, 17-11.
Park University (7-8, 5-1 AMC) took two games of a three-game set against Hannibal-LaGrange this past weekend. The Pirates won the first two games, 9-7 and 15-5, but could not get the sweep of the Trojans, as they allowed three runs in the top of the ninth to allow HLGU to tie the game and would lose in the next inning, as Hannibal-LaGrange plated a run in the top of the 10th to score the 9-8 victory.
The Owls offense will look to stay hot in Tuesday's doubleheader, as they scored a season-high 17 runs and 20 hits in game three's come-from-behind win. Matt Thomas continued his hot hitting over the weekend, as he hit .571 (8-for-14) with five RBI's and two doubles. Thomas is riding a 10-game hitting streak going into Tuesday's games. He has hit .476 (20-for-42) during the streak, and has hit two home runs and driven in 18 runs. On the year, the lefty is hitting .409 with two home runs, seven doubles, and team-best 21 RBI's.
Cody Stewart still leads the team in batting average on the year with his .491 clip. Like Thomas, Stewart brings a double-digit hitting streak into Tuesday's contests, as he has collected a hit in each of his last 11 games. The Temecula, Calif., native has posted a team-high 28 hits through 19 games this season. He leads the team in stolen bases, as he is a perfect 10-for-10 in that category.
Park University has won five of its last six contests, and will play a doubleheader against Graceland University on Monday afternoon. The Pirates have won an AMC-best five games coming into Tuesday's conference doubleheader, but trails No. 4 Missouri Baptist University by a half game for first place.
Shaun William Jr., leads the Park team that is hitting .317 as a team. The senior is hitting .432 on the year, and is riding a six-game winning streak. William Jr., hit .636 in the three-game series against Hannibal-LaGrange, and posted a multi-hit game in each contest.
The Pirates are averaging 6.6 runs per game, and have scored an average of 11.6 runs in six conference games this season. Earlier this year, Park defeated Williams Baptist College 23-8.
Milan Pleacher is the top starter for the Pirates this season with his 2-1 record and 2.00 ERA in four starts. Pleacher has tossed a pair of complete games this season, and leads the team in innings pitched with 27 so far. Opponents are hitting .225 off the starter, while he has complied 15 strikeouts on the year.
As a team, Park University holds a 4.79 ERA and has had three starters throw at least one complete game on the season.
Check back with wwuowls.com for a full recap of this and every game during the 2014 season.
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