Allea Benoit
March 30, 2018
Egg-Cellent EASTER CRAFTS
March 30, 2018
The Nicholls State University baseball team had a nightmarish start to its season, winning just once in its first 11 games
But Southland Conference play is here and the Colonels have found life, showing others in the league that they are more than capable of making a run at the crowd that they’ve coveted now for several seasons.
The Colonels continued to build momentum this past weekend, taking two of three games with McNeese to improve their positioning in the Southland Conference chase.
The Colonels are now 4-6 in the league, heading’ into their bye weekend, which will be spent facing Arizona.
Nicholls coach Seth Thibo-deaux said he thinks his team is playing its best baseball of the season right now. Compli-menting big guys on overcoming the early-season slump.
“They kept coming to work every day and just battling — grinding,” Thibodeaux said during a recent interview, “We had some tough breaks, but guys are settling in and we’re happy with where things stand”
Excuse the slang, but Nicholis is pitching the heck out of the baseball right now.
The Colonels were filthy on the mound the entire series against McNeese, limiting the Cowboys1 offense throughout the weekend
In Friday’s opener, senior lefty Alex Ernestine was masterful, tossing a complete-game shut out to spark a 1-0 Colonels victory.
Ernestine allowed just four hits and one walk in the win, weaving through the Cowboys lineup with first-pitch strikes and quality defense.
Nicholls got its lone run of the game in the second inning when Lee Clark poked an RBI base hit into the outfield, which scored Xane Washington – the difference in the game.
“Ernestine has become himself and he’s the most unselfish human being in the world,” Thibodeaux said after the win. “He competed his tail off and we made some great plays behind him. The best part about the night was that he was getting ahead of hitters – a lot of 0-1’s in there. I have an immense amount of respect for (McNeese coach) Justin Hill and McNeese baseball. I just know that it was a hard-fought baseball game on a Friday night and vie were able to come out on the right side of it
The Colonels’ pitching con-tinned throughout the rest of the weekend, but the bats came alive, too.
On Saturday. Nic bolls won 7-2. using timely offense and key. clutch hitting to spark the win
Starter Cay dm Hatcher was dominant on the mound, working eight innings, while allowing just two runs, scattering 10 hits. Hatcher had nine strikeouts in the afternoon.
The Colonels’ offense was huge, as well, posting a run in the first inning and then four in the third inning to roar ahead 5-0.
McNeese battled back with two runs in the sixth inning to cut the lead to 5-2, but Nicholls slammed the door shut with lone runs in the seventh and eighth innings to send the game to its final margin.
Thibodeaux said Saturday’s game was a true sign of how far the Colonels have grown throughout the season
He said earlier in the year when a team would make a rally, the Colonels would fold. But they did anything hut on Saturday, making several nice defensive plays in the late stages of the game to clinch the series victory.
“McNeese battled tight back into it and put themselves in position, but our guys never folded,” Thibodeaux. said. “Our guys never surrendered to anything For our guys to play great defense in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings and find a way to gut out two runs to put the nail in the coffin -that was big;’
Bui Sunday’s game was the one that got away from the Colonels
The Colonels jumped out early, scoring two runs in the third inning for an early lead.
McNeese battled back with a run in the sixth to cut Nichol-W lead to 2-1. But Nicholls fired home two more runs in the bottom of the sixth to answer McNeese’s rally and take a 4-1 lead.
Jacob Bedevian was huge for Nicholls in the win, tossing six innings, allowing just one run.
But in the ninth inning, it all went for naught
McNeese erased a 4-1 deficit in the final frame with a four-run, five-hit performance to take the lead. They scored their runs off three Nicholls pitchers.
The Colonels had a chance to take hack the momentum in the bottom of the ninth inning, but McNeese buckled down
The Colonels got a runner into scoring position with one out then got a runner to third base with two outs
But McNeese State recorded a strikeout to end the game and salvage one game in the .series.
Nicholls had bath a road and a bad baseball weekend Here’s what we mean. yes the Colonels won their weekend series with McNeese. That’s good. But the Colonels likely should have swept the series, hut didn”t. That’s the bad. Nicholls led 4-1 in the ninth inning of Sunday s final game, before surrendering a big inning, which allotted the Cowboys to steal a win.
