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Box Score 2 FULTON, Mo.—Behind the stellar pitching from seniors
MacKenzie Bowden and
Becca Schemmer, the No. 23-ranked William Woods University softball team swept past Missouri Baptist on Saturday afternoon, taking game one 3-1 and game two 2-0.
After game one concluded, the Owls honored its three seniors,
MacKenzie Bowden,
Lindsey LeCuru and
Becca Schemmer for their outstanding careers wearing the WWU uniform. The team and the coaching staff also honored manager and statistician Ale Martinez for all her help she has provided inside the dugout the last three seasons.
William Woods University 3 Missouri Baptist University 1 It was a perfect day for softball at Backer Sports Complex for softball, but what both teams, especially the offenses, needed to adjust to was the wind that was blowing straight in from centerfield.
The game was scoreless until the bottom of the second, as senior
Lindsey LeCuru got the inning started with a walk, and she was able to advance to second base on
Emily Murphy's sacrifice bunt.
Macy Wierschem then ripped a triple to right-center, scoring
Lindsey LeCuru and giving WWU the early 1-0 lead.
The Owls (30-15; 16-2 AMC) then pulled off a perfect squeeze play, as
Alexi Cavins laid down a great bunt, which allowed Wierschem to score from third and put WWU ahead 2-0 after two innings of play.
With Bowden on the mound, that lead was more than enough for the senior to pick up her 15
th victory on the 2014 season, while lowering her ERA to 1.05, after allowing one run (zero earned) on three hits and struck out seven Spartans.
In the bottom of the sixth, Cavins struck again with an important RBI, as she singled to right, scoring
Shelby LeCuru who hit a one-out single earlier in the inning, extending the advantage to 3-0.
The Spartans (23-18; 11-7 AMC), however, continued to battle, as after a single, fly out and another single, the team had runners on first and second for Donyelle DeMarse. Bowden got her to ground out, but it moved both runners up a base for Andrea Chessor, who was stepping to the plate as the final chance to keep the inning going.
A passed ball allowed pinch-runner Darrian Chrzanoski to score from third, cutting the lead down to 3-1, but that would be the end of the threat right there, as Bowden closed out the game striking out Chessor and extending the Owls winning streak to three.
The offense totaled eight hits in game one, and were led by the duo of Wierschem and Cavins, who combined to go 5-for-8 with one run scored and three RBI, while
Lindsey LeCuru, Murphy and
Sydnae Hatton added one hit each.
Jena Trombley took the tough loss for the Spartans, as she went six innings, allowing three runs on eight hits and struck out one. Brittany Edelen, Payton Anderson and Sierra Thompson contributed one hit a piece for MBU.
William Woods University 2 Missouri Baptist University Game two was another pitching battle between Schemmer and MBU freshman starter Chessor, as the duo forced weak ground balls and fly outs all afternoon against opposing hitters.
In the top of the sixth, the game was still tied 0-0, but
Shelby LeCuru hit a one-out infield single to get on base for junior
Kacey Scharnhorst. The St. Peters, Mo., native then smoked Chessor's offering to deep center field and the ball was just out of reach for the diving centerfielder, which allowed
Shelby LeCuru to score all the way from first and finally WWU was able to score on the Spartan starter and take the 1-0 lead thanks to Scharnhorst's triple.
Lindsey LeCuru then followed up with a single to center, which scored Scharnhorst from third and put the Owls up for good 2-0, as Schemmer made quick work of the Spartans in the bottom of the sixth and seventh innings to give WWU its fourth straight victory and Schemmer was able to pick up her eighth win on the year.
Schemmer forced 12 groundouts and needed just 76 pitches to get through seven innings of work, as the Huntsville, Mo., native allowed four hits and struck out one.
The Owls offense was limited to six hits, but made them count when needed, with the heart of the order doing most of the damage, as Scharnhorst,
Lindsey LeCuru and Murphy combined to go 4-for-9 with one run scored and two RBI.
The team has now won 13 out of its last 14 games and are absolutely rolling with just four American Midwest Conference regular season games remaining. The Owls will need to win out and they will have earned the AMC regular season title, but to do so, they will have to win away from Fulton, as they will be in Arkansas next weekend.
On Friday, Apr. 18
th, the Owls will square off against a pesky Williams Baptist College team that has had its ups-and-downs throughout the 2014 year. First-pitch on Friday will be thrown at 2 p.m., with game two following at 4 p.m.
On Saturday, Apr. 19
th, the team will play its final regular season doubleheader against Lyon College, who if they Owls sweep the Eagles on Friday, will look to play spoiler for William Woods.
Fans stay updated on wwuowls.com next week for a full preview on Friday's action against Williams Baptist College.
