April 19, 2009

Box Score

THIBODAUX, La. - Sam Houston State score nine runs on 14 hits en route to a series-sweeping 9-2 victory over the Colonels Sunday afternoon in Southland Conference baseball action at Ray E. Didier Field.

"I'm really disappointed on the weekend," said head coach Chip Durham. "I thought with where we were coming into this series that we had a chance to do something for ourselves in conference play."

Brent Powers, the third Bearkat pitcher to throw a complete game on the weekend, scattered six Colonel hits and two runs through nine innings, striking out eight batters and issuing just one walk.

For the Colonels (17-21, 8-13 SLC), Tyler Minto (Mobile, Ala./Alabama Southern CC) drops to 2-2 on the season after 5.2 innings of work. The righthander allowed six runs on 10 hits, fanning two. Ross Larson (New Lenox, Ill./Lurleen B. Wallace CC) tossed 3.1 innings of relief for Nicholls, giving up three unearned runs on four hits.

"We just didn't do a very good job this weekend," Durham added. "I don't want to take anything away from Sam Houston [State] - they came in and did what they had to do to beat us - but I feel like as a team, we played very poorly."

Nick Zaleski belted a solo shot to left field in the top of the first to put Sam Houston on top 1-0, but Nicholls' Scott Moseley (Enterprise, Miss./Meridian CC) answered with a blast of his own in the bottom of the second, evening the score at 1-1.

Sam Houston put another run on the board in the third, taking a 2-1 lead when Braeden Riley, who singled to left, scored on a bases-loaded ground out.

In the sixth, the Bearkats added to the lead, plating four runs on six-straight hits, including an RBI double by Justin Keithley that brought in two for a 6-1 Sam Houston State lead.

A three-run seventh put Sam Houston ahead 9-1 thanks to a triple from Keithley and a double from Riley that brought in three unearned runs.

The Colonels mounted a small rally with a run in the seventh to cut the Bearkat lead to 9-2 as Adam Miley's (Baton Rouge, La./Bossier Parish CC) double down the right field line plated Moseley, who led off the inning with a single up the middle.

"We've dug ourselves a hole in the league and we've got to find a way to get out of this rut and give ourselves a chance to go to the tournament," noted Durham.

Nicholls will host South Alabama Tuesday night at 6 p.m. in non-conference action before a three-game homestand against UTSA next weekend.

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