The William Woods University Lady Owls softball team slipped back to the .500 mark after dropping an AMC doubleheader to visiting rival Columbia College on Wednesday.
William Woods managed just two hits in being shut out 6-0 in the opener at Owls Field. No. 24 Columbia then completed a sweep with a 7-2 victory in the second game.
William Woods' lone hits in the first game came on a leadoff double by freshman shortstop Lindsey LeCuru in the bottom of the sixth inning and a two-out single by senior catcher Megan Willard in the seventh.
Freshman MacKenzie Bowden - who on Tuesday was named the AMC pitcher of the week for the second straight week - took the loss for the Lady Owls (22-17, 7-7 American Midwest Conference). Bowden surrendered four earned runs on six hits in five innings, struck out four and walked two.
LeCuru turned out to be the offensive highlight in the nightcap for William Woods. She went 3-for-4 with a solo home run.
The Lady Owls jumped on top by manufacturing a run in the top of the first. Senior left fielder Morgan Parkhurst doubled with one out and eventually scored on senior designated player Chelsea Loethen's two-out single to center.
Columbia (22-11, 9-3) answered with three runs in its half of the first to go in front, but William Woods pulled within 3-2 when LeCuru launched a solo shot - her 11th home run of the season - to left with one out in the third.
Bowden (11-7) also started the second game for William Woods but worked just one inning in being pinned with the loss. She surrendered three earned runs on five hits and struck out one.
Westminster baseball....................9...4
Webster University......................13...3
Senior outfielder VJ Reynolds' two-run single in the bottom of the seventh inning rallied the Blue Jays in the second game of Tuesday night's SLIAC doubleheader at Saucier Field.
Westminster College wasted leads of 7-0 and 8-3 in the opener as the Gorloks rallied for five runs in the top of the seventh to tie the game and force extra innings. Webster then topped off its comeback when it put up four runs in the 10th inning to break a 9-9 tie.
The Blue Jays (10-13, 5-5 St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) gained an early one-run lead in the nightcap. However, Webster (16-5, 9-2) tallied single runs in the second, third and fifth to carry a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the seventh.
After junior infielder Greg Finger scored on a wild pitch with one out, Reynolds bounced a single up the middle with the bases loaded to chase home junior catcher Nick Hoag and freshman pinch-runner Andy Pichler with the tying and winning runs, respectively.
Westminster sophomore starter Tyler Ten Eyck (2-4) went the distance for the win, giving up three runs on seven hits.
Sophomore outfielder Matt Mallette was 3-for-6 with a grand slam in the fifth to power the Blue Jays' 12-hit outburst in the first game.
Westminster sophomore reliever Kevin Moritz (0-2) suffered the loss.