Point Lookout, MO - With weather once again being a factor in the College of the Ozarks Baseball Bobcats schedule, the weekend series against William Woods University was moved to Saturday/Sunday to avoid the rain. Coming off a 1-3 series a week ago against Saint Xavier University in Chicago, the Bobcats were looking to bounce back and add to the win column.

C of O vs William Woods – Saturday, March 9, Game 1
Rhett Hill took the mound for the Bobcats in the series opener and made quick work of the Owls in the opening frame. The Bobcats went down in order in their half and Hill pitched around a two-out double in the second to keep the Owls off the board. Hill then led off the bottom of the second with a single and a Ty Rush sacrifice bunt advanced the runner. Hunter Lewis delivered and RBI single to give the Cats the early lead before a double play ended the Bobcat threat and Hill returned to the bump. Another three up, three down inning brought the Bobcats back to the plate and Charlie Parker smacked a double down the rightfield line to start the offense. Chuck Hill was hit by a pitch and Spencer Greene lined a two-out RBI single to left to add another run. The next out was recorded, and the Cats took a 2-0 lead to the fourth. Hill pitched around a Bobcat miscue to keep the Owls scoreless, and the Bobcats came up looking for more runs. After two quick outs, Jake Leeker drew a walk and Charlie Parker added a single to his resume to advance Leeker to third. A Trey Riley double scored Leeker and the Bobcat lead grew to 3-0. Chuck Hill caught the Owls off guard and put down a perfect bunt single to score another run and an error by the Owls plated another to give the Bobcats a 5-0 lead going to the fifth. The Owls broke through for a run in the top of the fifth with a single and a hit by pitch, but Hill limited the damage and brought the Cats back to the plate leading 5-1. The Bobcats wasted no time getting the run back as Rhett Hill drew a one-out walk and Ty Rush hammered an RBI double to center. Aaron Fisher followed with an RBI single, and the Owls needed a pitching change. The next out was recorded, and the game moved to the sixth with the Bobcats leading 7-1. Hill erased a two-out double by picking off the runner at second in the top of the sixth and the Bobcats came back up looking to add some insurance. A Trey Riley walk led off the sixth and the Owls went to the bullpen again. Riley was called out stealing second with batter interference and Blake Hultgren smacked a two-out double to center. Spencer Greene drew an intentional walk before the final out was recorded to send the game to the seventh. Hill was three outs away from the complete game, but the Owls were not going to give up easily. A hit by pitch was erased by a double play and a double was left stranded to wrap up the 7-1 complete game win.

Charlie Parker turned in a multi-hit game with a single and a double to lead the offense. Chuck Hill, Blake Hultgren (2B), Spencer Greene, Rhett Hill, Ty Rush (2B), Hunter Lewis, Aaron Fisher, and Trey Riley (2B) each added a hit in the win.

C of O vs William Woods University – Saturday, March 9, Game 2
Brody Baumann took the mound for game two and the Owls wasted little time turning the tide from game one. A pair of doubles, a Bobcat miscue, and a hit by pitch put three runs on the board for the visitors and the Bobcats had work to do in the early going. The Bobcats picked up singles by Chuck Hill and Rhett Hill in the bottom half, but they were unable to bring them around. Baumann cruised through a three up, three down second and the Cats came back to the plate. Hunter Lewis was hit by a pitch with one out, but that was the extent of the offense and the game moved to the third. Baumann struck out the side in the top of the third and the Bobcats had singles from Chuck Hill and Zane Kelley in the bottom half but could not come up with the timely hit to break through on the scoreboard. Baumann pitched around a Bobcat error in the top of the fourth and the Bobcats came back to the plate needing to string hits together. A Caleb Johnson single was all the Bobcats could muster and the Owl pitcher, Peyton Clampett was keeping the Bobcat hitters off balance. After the rough first inning, Baumann had settled in as well and had only allowed one more base runner through the sixth. The Bobcats picked up a single off the bat of Chuck Hill in the fifth but nothing more, and they were down to their final three outs. The Owls added a pair of insurance runs in the top of the seventh with a double, a walk, and an error and the Bobcats needed a big inning. Hunter Lewis started things off with a double to right and Caleb Johnson hit one deep to right off the glove of the right fielder. The Bobcats had runners at second and third with nobody out forcing an Owl pitching change. Aaron Fisher drew a walk and Lewis scored on a wild pitch. A Chuck Hill sacrifice fly scored another run, and the gap was cut to 5-2. A walk to Jake Leeker put runners on the corners and the Bobcats were chipping away. Spencer Greene ripped an RBI single and with the tying run at second, the Owls went to the bullpen again. Rhett Hill greeted the new hurler with a two-RBI double and the score was knotted at five a piece. With a runner at second and only one out, Ty Rush completed the comeback with a walk-off single to right and the Bobcats took game two, 6-5.

Chuck Hill led the way with three hits and Rhett Hill added two. Zane Kelley, Spencer Greene, Ty Rush (2B), Hunter Lewis, and Caleb Johnson each contributed one hit. The bulk of the offense erupted in the bottom of the seventh with Hunter Lewis, Spencer Greene, Rhett Hill, and Ty Rush delivering the major blows for the win.

C of O vs William Woods University – Sunday, March 10, Game 3
After a thrilling come from behind walk-off win in game two on Saturday, the Bobcats were looking to keep the momentum rolling for the final games of the series against William Woods University.

The Bobcats sent Westin Whiteside to the mound and the sophomore was ready to build on his strong start to the season. After two quick outs, the Owls broke through with a single and a double to take an early 1-0 lead. Whiteside limited the damage and retired the Owls to bring the Bobcats to the plate. A quick three up, three down inning sent Whiteside back to the bump to face the bottom three in the Owl lineup. A trio of singles pushed another run across for the Owls and the game moved to the bottom of the second with the Bobcats trailing 2-0. A Rhett Hill single and a walk to Ty Rush started the offense, but a double play and a pop out ended the threat. A leadoff homerun added to the Owl total before Whiteside set the next three down in order. The Bobcats needed offense and a walk to Caleb Johnson was followed by a Jake Leeker single to get things started. A fielder’s choice allowed Trey Riley to reach, and the Cats had bases loaded. Unfortunately, a strikeout produced the final out and the Bobcats came up empty. The Owls added another pair of tallies in the top of the fourth and Aaron Gross came on in relief. A strikeout ended the Owls threat, and the Bobcats were in need of stringing some hits together. A one-out single off the bat of Hunter Lewis was followed by a walk to Charlie Parker and a Caleb Johnson hit by pitch to load the bases. Right on cue, Jake Leeker blasted one over the left field wall and the gap dissipated to a 5-4 Owl lead. Chuck Hill ripped a single to left but the next two Bobcats were retired, and the game moved to the fifth. Gross pitched around a walk to shut down the Owls in the fifth and the Bobcats came back looking to keep the momentum going. A Ty Rush single with one out got the offense started and Charlie Parker launched one over the centerfield fence to give the Bobcats a 6-5 lead heading to the sixth. Spencer Greene came on to pitch and three quick outs brought the Bobcats back to the plate looking to add some insurance. A pair of singles by Lake Leeker and Trey Riley set the stage for a Spencer Greene blast over the left field fence and the Bobcats bult a 9-5 lead. Rhett Hill singled but that was all the offense, and the Bobcats were three outs away from another come from behind win. Greene pitched around a walk and a hit by pitch and the Bobcats took the contest 9-5.

Jake Leeker led the Bobcat offense with a pair of singles and a grand slam in his three plate appearances and Rhett Hill delivered a pair of hits in the win. Chuck Hill, Trey Riley, Spencer Greene (HR), Ty Rush, Hunter Lewis, and Charlie Parker (HR) each delivered a hit a piece. Timely hitting was huge for the Bobcats, and they would head to game four looking for the sweep.

C of O vs William Woods University – Sunday, March 10, Game 4
Tyler Buchanan got the start on the mound for the Bobcats and the trend continued with the Owls scoring first. Buchanan limited the damage to a pair of runs and the Bobcats would be in familiar territory trailing in the early going. The Bobcats went down in order in their half of the inning and Buchanan headed back to the mound needing a short inning. Just what the doctor ordered, Buchanan pitched around a two-out single and the Bobcats came back to the plate. The Bobcats picked up a single by Ty Rush but were unable to move him around and the game moved to the third. Buchanan cruised through the third and the Bobcats were still looking for an offensive outburst. It was not to be as the Bobcats went down in order again and the Owls were looking to add to their lead. A leadoff homerun added a run, but Buchanan slammed the door closed and the Bobcats trailed 3-0 coming up in the bottom of the fourth. A two-out single off the bat of Rhett Hill was all the offense for the Bobcats and Buchanan returned to the bump looking to hold the Owls. A two out single and a walk brought in Garyn Hall to pitch in relief and the freshman induced an inning ending ground ball. A single off the bat of Hunter Lewis was followed by a Charlie Parker double and the Bobcats were threatening in the bottom of the fifth. A Jake Leeker ground out to the right side produced an RBI and cut the Owl lead to 3-1, but the Bobcats were still looking for the big hit. Caleb Johnson delivered a pinch-hit RBI single, and Chuck Hill kept the line moving with a single to left. A fielder’s choice put runners at the corners with two out, but the next batter was retired, and the game moved to the sixth, 3-2 Owls. Hall set the Owls down in order in the top of the sixth and it was about time for the late inning Bobcat heroics to kick in. Right on cue, Rhett Hill blasted a homerun over the center field wall and the score was tied, 3-3. Ty Rush followed with a single and Jake Leeker extended the inning with a single of his own. With the go-ahead run just 90 feet away, a strikeout ended the threat and the game moved to the seventh. A leadoff home run returned the lead to the Owls, and another bumped the lead to 5-3. A walk brought in Spencer Greene to pitch in relief. Greene slammed the door closed and the Bobcats would have to pull off another heroic comeback if they were going to complete the series sweep. A leadoff walk to Chuck Hill started the comeback bid and a one out error allowed Spencer Greene to reach. Unfortunately for the Bobcats, a double play ended the string of comeback wins and the Owls took the final game 5-3.

Rhett Hill (HR) and Ty Rush led the way with a pair of hits each and Chuck Hill, Hunter Lewis, Charlie Parker (2B), and Jake Leeker each added a hit to the cause.

The Bobcats will be back in action on Wednesday when they host Evangel University in a single nine-inning game beginning at 3:00.