No other opponent here tormented the top seeds like the William Woods University Owls baseball team.
But in the end, all William Woods had to show for it was a pair of maddening near-misses.
The No. 4 seed Owls carried a two-run lead into the bottom of the ninth inning Saturday night, only to watch No. 2 Auburn University-Montgomery stage a stunning three-run rally to eliminate William Woods 9-8 at the NAIA national tournament.
The Owls - who led top-seeded LSU-Shreveport 5-2 last Thursday night before falling 10-5 - went 2-2 in making their first appearance at the national tournament. William Woods completed the season with a 30-16 record, reaching the 30-win mark for the third straight year.