FULTON, Mo. – The William Woods University baseball team split its doubleheader with Columbia College on a breezy day at Owl Field in Fulton, Missouri. The Owls took game one, 9-8, before falling in the second game, 14-11.
 
WWU returns to action on Wednesday, April 19th when they host College of the Ozarks in non-conference action. The Owls and Bobcats will play a doubleheader starting at 3 p.m.
 
Game One
Game Flow
The Owls hit the ground running in the bottom of the first when Jansen Smith came up with the bases loaded. He took the 1-0 pitch over the left-center field fence for a grand slam, putting the Owls ahead 4-0.
 
The Owls would add two more in the bottom of the second when Neal Aherin hit a double and Nolan Aherin reached on an error, scoring his brother. Tyler Cunningham would then knock in Nolan Aherin, giving the Owls a 6-0 lead.
 
The Cougars would fight in the top of the third to push one run across, 6-1. The Owls would then continue to stretch their lead by two, 8-1. WWU scored two runs on a triple by Neal Aherin.
 
Not giving up, the Cougars would keep chipping away at the Owls lead, scoring one run in the fourth and six runs in the top of the fifth, tying the game at 8-8. In the sixth inning, the Cougars scored six runs on seven hits.
 
With an entire new ball game, the Owls would get a runner on third, and would pull off a squeeze, scoring one 9-8.
 
The Cougars would threaten in the top of the sixth when runner would reach third, and Jansen Smith would throw out the Andrew Warner at the plate. Dalton Christian continued to put up zeros as he shutdown Columbia in the seventh and the Owls won game one, 9-8.  
 
By the Numbers
9 – WWU scored nine runs in the victory
10 – The Owls collected 10 hits
1 – Jansen Smith hit one home run in the contest
3 – WWU stole three bases in the contest
6 – William Woods pitchers struck out six in the contest
4 – Jansen Smith drove home four runs for the Owls
3 – Neal Aherin collected three hits in the first game
 
Starting Pitcher Lines
WWU – Ryan Phillips, 4.1 IP, 11 H, 6R (6ER), 0BBs, 3Ks
CC – Jeremy Rettig, 4 IP, 8H, 8R (6ER), 3BBs, 3Ks
 
Game Two
Game Flow
Game two would start off much like the first with the Owls scoring first. After a scoreless first two innings, the Owls scored in the bottom of the third. Josh Nicol reached on an error and Alex Saint Pierre would pinch run for the catcher. The Owls would get two more runners in scoring position and Ryan Phillips up to bat. Phillips hits a shot over the left field fence, giving the Owls the lead, 3-0.
 
The Cougars would answer back in the top of the fourth with bases loaded for Warner. After scoring two runs, Warner comes up big, extending Cougars lead by three, 6-3, after hitting a ground slam.
 
The game would continue to display the long ball as Jalen Poindexter came up as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the fourth with runners on first and second. He added a homerun of his own, putting the Owls ahead. The Owls would walk away with two more insurance runs taking an 8-6.
 
The Cougars would battle their way back by scoring three in the top of the sixth, and again in the top of the seventh when Warner added another two-run homerun, giving the Cougars a comfortable lead of three, 11-8.
 
The Owls offense would come alive with two outs. With two runners on, Neal Aherin hit a triple scoring two. The next batter, Josh Nicol followed hitting a double to left center and tying the game once again at 11-11.
 
The Cougars would continue to rally off hits as they score three more in the top of the ninth. The Owls offense would not be able to get a fire going in the bottom of the ninth, taking a tough loss, 14-11.
 
By the Numbers
11 – WWUs offense scored 11 runs in the contest
13 – The Owls collected 13 hits in the contest
3 – Ryan Phillips led the Owls with three hits in the contest
3 – Along with three hits, Ryan Phillips led the Owls with three RBI in the contest
8 – The Owls struck out eight times in the contest
3 – Jalen Poindexter drove home three on a home run
2 – WWU hit two home runs in the contest
 
Starting Pitcher Lines
WWU – Ryan Schmidt, 3.2 IP, 4H, 3R (3ER), 5BBs, 2Ks
CC – Cody Ebert, 3 IP, 7H, 8R (7ER), 4BBs, 3Ks