FULTON, Mo. -- A Missouri Baptist University balk allowed the William Woods University baseball team to score the game's go-ahead run in the bottom of the seventh, which would be more than enough for reliever James Ball, as he made the one-run lead stand, giving the Owls a 4-3 victory in game one of this American Midwest Conference three-game series against the No. 3-ranked team in the NAIA.

After allowing No. 3 Missouri Baptist (32-6, 15-3 AMC) to tie the game, 3-3, in the top of the seventh, William Woods (26-8, 13-6 AMC) got its lead-off hitter, Zach Nichols, on base to lead-off the bottom of the frame. Nichols was lifted for pinch-runner, Damon Adrian, but he was quickly erased on Nick Spagnola's 6-4 fielder's choice. Spagnola would advance all the way to third, thanks to a pair of stolen bases, to setup the game's deciding scene.

Designated hitter, Dustin Kremer, stepped up to the plate and quickly found himself down two strikes. The righty took a big swing and a miss at a Carl Jameson fastball, to presumably end the inning. However, before the pitch was delivered, the home plate umpire charged the Spartan reliever with a balk, allowing Spagnola to score from third and give WWU the 4-3 lead.

James Ball, who entered the game with two outs in the bottom of the sixth, was able to work around three hits over the final two innings, to preserve the one-run victory for William Woods.

The Owls jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning, thanks to a RBI single from Nichols and a two-run RBI double by Spagnola. Head Coach Darren Munns said jumping out to the lead helped give his team confidence, and allowed them to put together quality at-bats throughout the game.

"First off, it was very important for us to jump out to a 3-0 lead against Missouri Baptist," said Munns. "I thought we swung the bats extremely well tonight, but our kids hit into some tough luck, which you have to give credit to their defense for that. They have the kind of record they have, because they are such a good defensive team."

Dane Smith got the start for William Woods, and the team's ace did not disappoint, as he was able to shutout one of the NAIA's top offenses for six innings before allowing a three spot in is final inning of work.

"It's no surprise that Dane had that kind of performance tonight," said Munns of his righty. "He is a true ace, he is able to compete at the highest-level every time he takes the mound. He gave us a great chance to win tonight, he threw strikes, and he was able to wiggle out of trouble, which are the kind of things that No. 1 pitchers are able to do. I am really proud of his effort tonight.

The Halls, Tenn., native was able to work around nine hits and three walks, but was still able to collect four strikeouts before giving up three runs in the bottom of the seventh to end his day with a no decision.

Ball came in relieve of Smith, and was able to get out of a two-on, two-out jam by ending the frame with a strikeout of Jeff Smith.

"He has been good all year for us," Munns said of Ball. "He was spoiled us a bit with how good he is. He is a competitive person, he has the perfect mentality to close games, and he can throw five pitches for strikes, so he has been a great weapon out of the pen for us."

The Hillsboro, Mo., native's effort was good enough to pick up his fourth win on the season, as he threw 2.1 innings of shutout baseball and struck out two along the way.

Nichols led the way offensively for WWU, as the senior picked up three of the team's seven hits. The Hannibal, Mo., native was the lone Owl to pick up a multi-hit game on the night, by going 3-for-4 at the plate with three singles and an RBI.

Despite striking out four and allowing one hit in two innings of work, Carl Jameson suffered the loss for the Spartans, due to him balking in the go-ahead run in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Brandon Zywicki started the game for MBU, looking to become the AMC's first 10-game winner of the season, but he was denied that distinction, after allowing three runs on six hits in 5.2 innings of work.

Josh Fuentes picked up a four-hit game in the loss, as the Spartans were able to outhit the Owls, 12-7.

Brent Zimmerman belted his third home run of the year to lead off the seventh inning, giving him a two-hit night.

Both teams will be back in action tomorrow afternoon with a doubleheader starting at 12 p.m. Lefty John Cavness will take the mound in game two of the series, and Bubba Bradshaw will start the series finale.

Check back with wwuowls.com for a full recap of both games.