HANNIBAL -- Matt Hanson and Colby Caton helped spark the offense for William Woods (15-15-1, 3-3 American Midwest Conference) as it took both games on Saturday from Hannibal-LaGrange University (6-15, 1-5) with 10-2 and 8-1 wins respectively.
Game 1 featured an explosive Owls offense against a Trojan pitching staff that couldn't find a way to counter the Woods approach.
The Owls' offensive explosion started in the first inning when they plated three runs on a single by Jack Niggemeier, followed by an RBI double from Hanson.
After the Trojans intentionally walked Jacob McWhirter, Kamron Morriss lined a single to center field, scoring Hanson. Taylor Hopkins drew a walk, setting up Cade Irwin to hit a sacrifice fly to left, scoring the third run of the inning.
William Woods scratched another run in the second on a loud double off the bat of Hanson. The Owls added two runs in the fourth and four runs in the fifth.
The Woods hurler, Peyton Clampitt, allowed only one run over his five innings despite not having his best outing.
Clampitt's relief arm, Wyatt Fischer, also held the Trojans to just two hits and one run over his two innings of work as WWU held on to win the game 10-2.
The 30-minute hiatus between games was not enough to cool down the Woods offense, as it scored eight runs in the day's second contest.
The Owls offense was sparked in the second inning when Hopkins lined a ball to left field. On the next pitch, the speedy Hopkins swiped second base, allowing freshman Caton to bring him home on a single to center field.
The Woods put up back to back three spots in the fourth and fifth innings tallying four and five hits respectively in the frames.
In the fourth inning, highlighted by a double off the bat of Irwin, seven of the nine Owls sluggers reached base.
Caton stepped to the plate in the fifth inning with the bases loaded. The freshman drove a deep fly ball to left field, narrowly missing a home run and hitting the yellow warning strip on the top of the wall. Despite missing his first home run as an Owl, he was able to drive in the last two runs of the inning.
Ty Schaffer graced Owls fans on the mound with an excellent complete-game outing. Schaffer gave up only one run over nine innings, allowing eight hits while striking out 11 and walking none.
William Woods gets ready to host a five-game homestand on Tuesday as it takes on Park University. The first pitch is at 1 p.m.