Columbia, Mo. – The Columbia College baseball team was back in action tonight when they traveled to Fulton, Missouri, to take on the William Woods University Owls in an AMC doubleheader. The Cougars were able to split the doubleheader with the Owls taking the first game by a final score of 4-3 and dropping the second game by a final score of 7-4 to improve to 25-10 on the season and 12-8 in conference play.
In the first game against the Owls, Columbia College was able to put together six hits in the come from behind victory. Williams Woods got off to a fast start in this one as they rallied for three runs in the bottom of the first to jump out to an early 3-0 lead. The Cougars had a tough time getting anything going through the first three innings of the game but were able to break that trend in the top of the fourth following an RBI single from Ethan Howser to cut the lead to 3-1. They continued to put the ball in play as the game progressed and were able to add a second run in the top of the fifth and two runs in the top of the seventh to solidify their 12th conference win of the season.
J.W. McGraw (4-0) was on the mound to start this one as he allowed five hits and two earned runs while striking out three in 4.0 innings of work. Derek Sallee (4-3) and Dakota Stone (4-1) came in to relieve McGraw as the two combined to allow just one hit while striking out three in three scoreless innings. Offensively, the Cougars were led by Jordan Wright who went 1-4 with an RBI, Blade McKee who went 1-4 with an RBI, and Ethan Howser who went 1-3 with an RBI.
In the second game against the Owls, the Cougars were held to just two hits in the loss. William Woods got off to another quick start in this one as they got on the board in the bottom of the second to take a 1-0 lead. Columbia College answered quickly and were able to score one run in the top of the third and one run in the top of the sixth to take a 2-1 lead heading into the bottom half the frame. However, their lead did not last long as the Owls rallied for three runs in the bottom of the sixth to retake a 4-2 lead. The Cougars were able to tie the game at four in the top of the eighth but another three run rally in the bottom half of the inning propelled the Owls to the 7-4 win.
Chris Wall (1-1) got the start in this one as he allowed four hits and three earned runs while striking out 12 in 5.1 innings on the mound. Lane Threlkeld (0-0) and Craig Smith (3-2) came in to relieve Wall in the sixth as the two combined to allow one hit and no earned runs while striking out one in the final 2.2 innings of the game. Ethan Howser went 1-4 with two RBI's to lead the Cougars at the plate.
The Cougars are back in action tomorrow, April 10th when they travel to Fayette, Missouri, to take on the 24th ranked Central Methodist (Mo.) University Eagles in a nonconference matchup. The game is set to start at 6 p.m.
