Mar. Theatre
March 5, 2007Harry Smith
March 7, 2007
The Colonels completed the sweep of new conference foe Central Arkansas on Sunday with a 7-2 victory at Farris Field to improve to 4-1 in conference play.
“We played well this weekend and the team showed what they are capable of,” said head coach Jenny Parsons.†“It is good to have four wins under our belt in conference play.”
The Colonels (12-9, 4-1) have now won four consecutive games, and four of their five games on the week in conference action.
The series finale against the Sugar Bears (6-13, 0-3) featured another powerful hitting display by the Colonels, and leading the charge for Nicholls was senior Leah Peterson.† Peterson hit two bombs on the day while going 2-for-4 with four RBIs, while sophomore Kodi Butler finished 3-for-4 with a double and three RBIs.†Senior Jacqueline Pacheco hit a double to finish 1-for-3, and senior Jennifer Campbell finished 2-for-4 with a run scored.
Junior Jessica Barksdale (1-0) went the distance in seven innings of work as she struck out seven, and gave up seven hits.†Only one of the two runs for the Sugar Bears were charged to Barksdale.
In the series’ previous two games, the Lady Colonels won 15-4 and 11-0.
Nicholls won’t be back on the diamond until March 14, 2007 when they travel to play Alcorn State.
Nicholls men fall a game short of SLC Tourney
Senior Stefan Blaszczynski scored a career best 33 that included 26 of the Colonels 41 second half points to bring the Colonels close at the end, but went onto lose 77-76.†
The Colonels (8-22, 7-9) battled down to the wire with McNeese State (14-16, 9-7) as Blaszczynski’s closing seconds shot bounced out, and the rebound from the miss resulted in a jump ball situation which the Cowboys regained possession with 0.8 seconds left.† The Colonels would not touch the ball again.
“Ten times out of 10 times I am going to call that play for Stefan,” said head coach J.P. Piper.†“I can’t tell you how much it has meant for me to have had the privilege to coach Stefan, and I hope I get another chance in the conference tournament.”
After the loss to the Cowboys, Nicholls’ Southland Conference bid depended on Southeastern beating Lamar at Lamar, and with the Cardinals beating the Lions 83-64, the Colonels post season hopes disappeared.
Blaszczynski was the game’s leading scorer, finished his senior campaign the leading scorer in the Southland Conference, and etched himself into the ninth spot on the all-time scorers list with 1,373 points.†He also finished the game with eight rebounds, to place him 13th on the all-time rebounding list with 518 career boards.
The second half belonged to Blaszczynski who made nine of his 12 total field goals in the second half.† As a team in the second half, Nicholls only committed five turnovers, and steadily paced themselves to have a chance at the end.
“I just wanted everyone in that locker room to know that we are all champions,” said Piper.†“I know the scoreboard didn’t reflect it tonight, but our heart and passion till the end sure did.”
Nicholls started the game hot with a 19-10 lead at the 12:25 mark to give the Colonels their largest lead of the game, but McNeese State fired back with a 15-0 run of their own to take a 25-19 lead at the 9:11 point in the first half.† Cowboy’s senior Troy Aaron was a huge catalyst in the run as he sank two three balls in a row to boost his team.†Aaron, who was playing in his last home game for McNeese State, led all scorers at half with 11 points and finished with a team high 24 points.
The halftime score was in favor of the Cowboys 41-35 as they shot 50 percent (17-of-34) from field goal range and 54.5 percent (6-of-11) from behind the arc.†The Colonels’ 35 first half points came on a 46.7 percent (14-of-30) shooting performance from the floor as they made 31.3 percent (5-of-16) from downtown.
For the game, McNeese State shot 48.4 percent (31-of-64) from the floor and 45 percent (9-of-20) from three point territory, while Nicholls shot 45 percent (27-of-60) from field goal range and 33.3 percent (8-of-24) from downtown.
Nicholls had three other players besides Blaszczynski in double figures with sophomore Gil Verner checking out with 15, sophomore forward Ryan Bathie finished with 11, and junior Adonis Gray rounded out the double digit scorers with 10.
Nicholls baseball falls to No. 21 Oklahoma State
No. 21 Oklahoma State defeated Nicholls, 12-4, Sunday afternoon at the Allie P. Reynolds Stadium, to complete the weekend sweep of the Colonels.
The Colonels (3-10) finished the game with four runs and 13 hits, while the Cowboys (10-3) posted 12 runs on 14 hits.
Justin Breaux (1-2) suffered the loss, allowing seven earned runs on eight hits through 2.1 innings. Andrew Oliver (3-0) picked up the win, giving up four earned runs on eight hits in 4.1 innings of work.
Thomas Bourne led the Colonels at the plate, going 4-for-5. Ryan Bledsoe contributed three hits. Matt Mangini and Matt Lopez both finished 3-for-4 at the plate, with a homerun. Mangini added a double, homerun, walk, four RBI and two runs scored, Lopez finished with a homerun, three RBI and two runs scored.
Oklahoma State jumped out to a quick lead, plating two runs in the bottom of the first inning. After retiring the first two batters, Breaux allowed a single to Corey Brown, followed by an RBI double to Mach, to score the first run. Mangini then drove home Mach with a single to center field.
Nicholls was able to get one of the runs back, in the top of the second, manufactured mainly from Bledsoe. After leading off the inning with a single, Bledsoe advanced to second on a groundout, stole third base, and then came home to score on a grounder to shortstop by Zac Bone.
After the Cowboys stranded two runners in the bottom of the second, the Colonels took a 3-2 lead in the top of the third, their first lead of the weekend series. Singles by Bourne and Whitney Dawes put runners on the corners with only one out. Brett Hoeflich followed with a pop out to the second baseman that was deep enough to score Bourne from third, tying the game at 2-2. Oliver then hit A.J. DeLaneuville with a pitch, to put runners at first and second. Bledsoe then delivered a two-out single to right field, scoring Dawes with the go ahead run.
But the Nicholls lead would be short-lived, as the Cowboys exploded for seven runs on five hits in their half of the third, to take a 9-3 lead.
The Colonels added a run in the top of the fifth. Singles by Dawes and DeLaneuville put runners at first and second with one out. Bledsoe then greeted Oklahoma State reliever, Jeff Breedlove, with an RBI single to right field, scoring Dawes from second and trimming the Cowboy lead to 9-4.
However, once again, Oklahoma State answered with two runs in the bottom of the fifth and one in the sixth, to claim the weekend finale, 12-4.
Nicholls will begin a six-game homestand at Ray E. Didier Field, beginning on Tuesday when the Colonels host South Alabama at 6:30 p.m.
The Colonels softball (1-6) won the second game against Louisiana-Lafayette 6-1, and lost the first game against the #13 Ragin Cajuns (7-1) by the identical score of 6-1. Photo by Doug Keese2/14/07
