COLUMBIA, Mo. – The William Woods (5-4) traveled to Columbia on Saturday for a three-team doubleheader against Northwestern and Columbia, falling in both contests to close out the day.
In the opener against Northwestern,
Keith Piepmeier was dominant on the mound for the Owls. The right-hander tossed five shutout innings, striking out nine batters while allowing just one walk and keeping Northwestern off the scoreboard through the first five frames.
The Owls broke through in the third inning when
Sam Russo delivered an RBI single to plate
Jude Gremillion, giving Woods a 1-0 advantage. However, offense was hard to come by the rest of the way. Northwestern evened the score in the top of the seventh before pushing across the go-ahead run in the eighth, handing the Owls a tough 2-1 extra-inning loss.
In game two against Columbia, the Owls struck first once again.
Colby Caton singled to bring home Russo, giving Woods an early 1-0 lead. Starter
Gavin Allen settled in nicely, allowing just two runs while striking out four and keeping the Owls within striking distance.
Trailing by one entering the sixth inning,
Kaden Kinsler ignited the dugout with a solo home run over the right field wall to tie the game. The momentum was short-lived, however, as Columbia answered with an eleven-run bottom of the sixth inning to break the game open. The surge proved too much to overcome, and the Owls fell 13-2 in the second contest.
With frigid temperatures moving into the area, William Woods will return to action tomorrow for a single seven-inning matchup against Northwestern, scheduled for 11:00 a.m.
