Stephens College made the short drive to Fulton, MO Monday afternoon to take on the William Woods Lady Owls in their conference opener in hopes of beating WWU for the first time in softball history. 

In game one, the Stars were able to jump on the starting pitcher by putting the ball in play and forcing the defense to make errors and advance the runners with ease. With the wind howling from right to left field, Avery Throckmorton was able to drive a looping pop up to center field which allowed Anabel Throckmorton to tag up from third and score. The Stars kept this game close with a three run fifth inning that brought the game to a 4-5 score line with pressure on WWU to keep the lead. Unfortunately, the offense only generated one hit in the last two innings. Grace Tath took the mound for the Stars, allowing six hits and five earned runs, while striking out four. 

With game two being just as windy, this didn't stop the Stars from grabbing the first lead of the game, but with that, William Woods came out with a strong three innings of play scoring five runs with sacrifice flies and moving the base runners over. Elise Kendrick got the start and she fanned seven batters. The velocity and control was there for Kendrick today, despite the cold weather. Players weer swinging and missing, even with her pitch count getting close to the hundred and thirty mark. The Stars did fall in game two 5-1 and are looking to bounce back against Hannibal-LaGrange University at the end of the week.