CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa- In day two of the Heart of America Athletic Conference Softball Championship Tournament, William Woods (23-22) took on the host institution in Mount Mercy University (20-28). The Owls carried an explosive fifth inning to a 6-1 win to eliminate the Mustangs from postseason play.
William Woods was first to crack the score column, scratching a lone run in the bottom of the third inning off the Mustang ace. Sammy Lohnes sparked the Owls offensive efforts in the frame with a leadoff singleback up the middle. After an eight pitch at-bat, second baseman Kaitlyn Plassmeyer secured the Owls' second base runner of the inning as she earned a free pass to first via the base on balls. With leadoff hitter Lexi Lewis at the plate, Woods crossed their first runner of the game on an errant throw in an attempt to get Lewis out at first, resulting in a one-run lead for The Woods.
Answering the Owls' run in the bottom of the third inning, Mount Mercy first baseman and three-hole hitter Calli Janek delivered a solo shot to even the scoring at one a piece. William Woods responded in stellar fashion in the closing half of the fourth frame, amassing five runs before MMU was able to retire three hitters. Ella Aguiar, Addie Rhea, and Sara Foster loaded the bases on back-to-back-to-back base knocks. After an errant throw off the ball-in-play from Brooklynn Spillman, Woods had gathered their first run of the inning while maintaining a packed base path.
Mariah Prince earned a four-pitch walk to grow William Woods' lead to 3-1. Following Prince, Lohnes also earned a free pass to first base and a free RBI on another four-pitch walk to create a 4-1 Owls' advantage. Plassmeyer forced a fielder's choice that scored Spillman from third base and giving William Woods a four-run advantage. With two outs, the bases loaded walk bug would strike again as Aguiar battled off five pitches before bringing home Woods' final run of the contest.
Taylor Baumhoer was able to face near the minimum down the final stretch, as William Woods holds on to a 6-1 advantage to advance to the 5 p.m. game against #4 seeded Benedictine.
