NEW ALBANY, Miss. – For the second straight day, the William Woods University baseball team was swept in doubleheader action by Blue Mountain College. The Owls were defeated, 9-5, in game one and 4-2, in game two of the doubleheader.
 
Six different Owls combined four two hits in the contests. WWU hit its first two home runs of the season in game one, as Jalen Poindexter and Tyler Cunningham each hit solo homeruns. Blue Mountain outhit the Owls, 21-13, in the twin bill.
 
WWU returns to action on Saturday February, 11th when they open a four-game set with Baker University in Baldwin City, Kansas. First pitch of the doubleheader is set for 1 p.m.
 
Game One
Game Flow
After a scoreless first inning of action, the Owls got on the board in the top of the second. With Jalen Poindexter leading off, he fell behind 0-2, before he took the third pitch over the left centerfield fence for his first home run of the season putting the Owls ahead, 1-0. WWU was not done after Patrick Dillon walked, Glen DesBouillons doubled to left putting runners on second and third with one out. Dillon came into score on a sacrifice fly to left, but DesBoullions was throwing out at third base ending the inning with the Owls ahead, 2-0.
 
Blue Mountain cut the lead in half in the bottom of the third inning. With a runner on third base, Miciah Heard singled off Chase Feucht, which scored Thomas Moore. Feucht retired the next batter and after three innings of play the Owls lead 2-1.
 
William Woods extended its lead to two, 3-1, in the fourth inning. Leading off the inning for the Owls was Tyler Cunningham. Cunningham had a 1-1 count and on the third pitch of his at-bat, he drove the ball over the right field fence for a home run. The next three Owls would be retired in order and the Owls led 3-1 after three and a half innings of play.
 
The Toppers answered back in the bottom of the fifth inning as they scored two runs on four hits, tying the game at 3-3. Zack Potette and Peyton Callahan came through with RBI hits in the inning.
 
After the Owls were retired in the top of the sixth inning, Blue Mountain took its first lead of the contest when they scored six runs on five hits in the bottom of the inning. Callahan came through in the inning for the Toppers with a two-run RBI single.
 
Trailing 9-3, in the final at-bats, the Owls Patrick Dillon doubled to left leading off the inning. DesBoullions followed with a single to short putting two runners on base. Ryan Phillips came in to pinch hit and grounded into a field choice. With one out and two runners on, Zach Smith entered the game as a pinch hit and came through with a single to center field, loading the bases for the Owls.
 
With the bases loaded, Nolan Aherin grounded into a field choice, that scored one. On the play, Phillips was forced out at third but the Owls still had runners on first and second. Alex St. Pierre came through with a single to center, which scored one, put on the play Aherin was thrown out at third base ending the inning and the Owls would fall in game one, 9-5.
 
By the Numbers
5 – WWU scored five runs in the contest, the most its scored in a single game this season
9 – The Owls had nine hits in game one, the most hits in a single game
2 – Tyler Cunningham and Glen DesBouillons led the Owls with two hits each
1 – WWU drew one walk in the contest
3 – The Owls pitching staff struck out three in the contest
4 – William Woods had four extra base hits in the contest
2 – WWU hit two home runs in the game; one each for Tyler Cunningham and Jalen Poindexter
 
Starters Lines
WWU – Chase Feucht, 5 IP, 8H, 5R (4 ER), 1BB, 2K's
BMC – David Torres, 5 IP, 4H, 3R (3 ER), 1BB, 4K's
 
Game Two
Game Flow
The Owls offense struggled getting anything going at the plate to start game two as the Toppers Dustin Allen kept the Owls bats hitless over the first five innings of play. WWU put three runners on over the first five innings as they took advantage of two Blue Mountain errors and a walk but never could get a threat started.
 
Blue Mountain got to Owls starter, Ryan Phillips, in the bottom of the second inning. With two outs and a runner on first, David Torres doubled to left field, which scored Josh Whitaker putting the Toppers ahead, 1-0. That would be all they would get as Phillips got Zack Poteete to ground out to end the inning.
 
William Woods battled back in the top of the sixth inning. With Alex St. Pierre on first and one out, Zach Smith singled to right field, which scored St. Pierre and Smith advanced to second on the throw. Smith came into score on a Patrick Dillon single to center putting the Owls ahead, 2-1. On Dillon's single, he was thrown out trying to go to second base and the inning was over.
 
The Owls lead did not last long, as the Toppers answered right back in the bottom of the inning. After a groundout to start the inning, the Toppers got back-to-back singles off Phillips. With runners on second and third, Caleb Leach reached first on a fielders' choice, as Callahan was forced out at second. Nolan Stevens singled home one and Josh Whitaker doubled home another putting the Toppers ahead, 3-2, after six innings of play.
 
William Woods looked to have a two-out rally going in the seventh. After the first two batter were retired, the next three Owls reached base to load the bases. However, the inning came to an end on a ground out.
 
Blue Mountain added another run in the bottom of the eighth inning. With two runners on, Whitaker drove in one with a single to left field extending the Toppers lead to 4-2.
 
Coming to bat in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Owls needed two runs to force extra innings, but the Owls were retired in order and the Owls dropped game two, 4-2.
 
By the Numbers
1 – Ryan Phillips is the first pitcher this year for the Owls to throw a complete game
4 – WWU collected four hits in game two
3 – Ryan Phillips struck out three Toppers
4 – Four different Owls had a hit in the contest
3 – WWU drew three base on balls in the contest
1 – Zach Smith and Patrick Dillon each had one RBI in the contest
 
Starters Lines
WWU – Ryan Phillips, 8 IP, 10H, 4 R (4ER), 1BB, 3K's
BMC – Dustin Allen, 6 IP, 3H, 2 R (2ER), 2BB's, 4K's