Fulton, Missouri - We head to what I believe they call Fultvegas there in Fulton, Missouri for an American Midwest Conference matchup that features the top two AMC teams. It feels like yesterday that I (Conner) was causing some chaos there in the AMC. This conference only has 1 bid to the national tournament coming from the tournament champion, and these two teams are fighting for that top spot to set them up to claim that automatic qualifier.
Who's playing?
#8 Missouri Baptist (27-4, 8-1 AMC) will hit the road and travel just under 100 miles to Fulton, Missouri to play a 3 game series vs William Woods. Both teams are having great years and are currently tied 8-1 at the top of the American Midwest Standings.
History
Missouri Baptist leads the all-time series 58-26, and has a current winning streak of 3 straight wins. The first game between these two teams took place on April 26th, 2003 which resulted in a 6-0 Missouri Baptist win. The last time these two met was in an AMC tournament elimination game where the Spartans would go on to eliminate the Owls 10-5. The Spartans are 21-12 while playing the Owls in Fulton.
Schedule
All times local
Game 1 - Friday 4:00 PM
Game 2 - Saturday 12:00 PM
Game 3 Saturday 2:30 PM
How to watch
FREE
https://portal.stretchinternet.com/wwuowls/
The Teams
#8 Missouri Baptist is 27-4 so far this season and have tested themselves picking up 7 top 25 wins. The Spartans are hitting .341 as a team which is tied for 11th in the country, and are led offensively by Alex Adams who has started every game and is hitting .427. The Spartans have really made a statement on the offensive side so far this season, with five of their nine starters boasting an average of .350 and higher. On the mound, Missouri Baptist is lead by the junior right-hander Anthony Green. The St. Louis, Missouri native has a 3.35 ERA with 72 K’s in only 43 IP. The Spartans also have a true threat out of the bullpen this year as well in Skout Rallo who is one of the best relievers in the country to this point, owner of a 0.73 ERA and 18 K’s in only 12.1 IP. If Rallo can silence the William Woods bats late in games, Coach Eddie Uschold has to like his team's chances to come away with a big AMC series victory this weekend in Fulton.
William Woods comes into this series with a 22-10 record and winners of four straight as Coach John Cavness looks for a marquee conference series victory in his second season at the helm for the Owls. Offensively, WWU is lead by senior right fielder Isaiah Gibbs who comes in with a .374 average and team leading 1.078 OPS. Gibbs is the team leader currently in HR, RBI, 2B, and total bases. One of the outfield counterparts that also stands out for the Owls is the left fielder Ian O’ Malley. The senior is just behind Gibbs in batting average with a .368 to his name. On the mound is where William Woods really stands out, due in large part to the right-hander Ryan Long. The senior from Freeport, Illinois has been one of the best pitchers in the country this season with miniscule ERA of 1.09, good for 3rd nationally to this point. Opponents are only hitting .175 off of Long this season and seeing his stuff against a very potent Spartan lineup should be incredibly fun to watch this weekend. Behind Long on the Owls pitching staff is senior Jared Stephens who has thrown 35 innings this season surrendering only 7 walks. In order for William Woods to take this series, the duo of Long and Stephens will need to silence the red hot bats of the Spartans.
Final Thoughts
These two AMC opponents know each other very well and with the stakes even higher this weekend with sole possession of first place on the line in the conference, this is the time of year that you get excited about as things start to pick up. Missouri Baptist currently has the better resume of the two, but things could quickly change that with a very good William Woods team wanting to defend their home turf. With both teams having very good lineups, it will ultimately come down to which pitching staff can limit the damage in the late inning, high leverage situations. Not only will the series winner grab firm control of first place in the conference, but even more momentum heading down the stretch with the conference tournament in sight.
-Conner Darnell & Taylor Thomas