BELLEVILLE, Ill. -- The William Woods University baseball team concludes its six-game road trip on Wednesday afternoon as they travel to Lindenwood University-Belleville for a mid-week non-conference showdown. First pitch is set for 12 p.m.
William Woods (18-6) is coming off a five-game week that saw them go 4-1, as they improved to 7-4 in American Midwest Conference play. The Owls started the week off sweeping Park University in a doubleheader, and followed that with a three-game series win at Harris-Stowe State University.
Nick Spagnola led the offensive charge for the Owls in the five-game week and his performance earned him AMC Player of the Week. Spagnola hit .545 with a home run, two doubles, and 12 RBI to earn the player of the week honor. The junior also went a perfect 7-for-7 in stolen bases, highlighted by a three-stolen base performance against the Hornets in game one of Saturday's doubleheader.
On the year, the outfielder is hitting .417 with one home run and 23 RBI. He also holds a .442 on-base percentage and has posted a .514 slugging percentage in 72 at-bats.Â
As a team, WWU posts a .312 batting average, a mark that is the 26th-best in the NAIA. The Owls score an average of 7.8 runs per game, which is the seventh-most in the country, which has allowed them to collect the 29th-highest run total in the nation at 187.
On the pitching rubber, William Woods is led by relief pitcher James Ball. The closer has already collected six saves this season, which is just one save behind Matt Thomas' team-high total of seven saves in each of the last two seasons.
Ball's six saves is also the seventh-most in the NAIA. The Hillsboro, Mo., native holds a 2-1 record with a team-best 1.49 ERA in 36.1 innings pitched. Ball has struck out 28 batters and walked just three hitters this season, while holding opposing hitters to a .227 ERA.
Lindenwood University-Belleville (15-8) comes into Wednesday's game on a seven-game winning streak thanks to back-to-back three-game sweeps against Viterbo University and Oakland City University. Â Wednesday will also be a preview to the AMC's newest team, as LU-B will be joining the conference after the 2014 season.
In their three-game series against Oakland City, the Lynx scored 45 runs and allowed just four in the sweep. For the year, Lindenwood-Belleville is averaging the 46th-most runs in the NAIA, scoring 6.1 runs. The Lynx brings in a .306 team batting average into this non-conference game.
Mirek Sharp leads the team in hitting with his .451 batting average. Sharp has played in 18 of the team's 23 games and has collected 23 hits in 51 at-bats. Vince Anello leads the team in extra-base hits with seven doubles, one triple, and a pair of home runs. The 10 extra-base hits have allowed Anello to take a team-lead in RBI with 22.
The Lynx hold a team staff ERA of 3.55, a mark that ranks 46th in the nation. Joe Phelps is the team's top starter, as he holds a 4-2 record in seven starts, and has tossed four complete games. Phelps posts a 2.36 ERA and has struck out 42 batters in his 42 innings of work.
Phelps is just one of three starters for Lindenwood-Belleville that holds an ERA under 3.50. Dylan Arvai holds a 2.88 ERA, while Mike Sabantino has a 3.28 ERA. Sabantino also holds the team-lead in wins with five.
Check back with wwuowls.com for a full recap of this and every game during the 2014 season.
