THIBODAUX – The Nicholls State University softball team will wrap up their 16-game season opening road stand on Wednesday when they head to Mobile, Ala. to take on South Alabama at 5 p.m at Jaguar Field.

Nicholls (6-9) heads into the matchup coming off a hard fought 6-5 extra innings loss against Mississippi Valley State in their final game of the Southern Miss Invitational on Sunday. The Colonels, however, were able to pick up a win over the weekend by defeating Evansville 5-3.

Freshman Brittany Marcet leads the Colonel offense with a .350 batting average, which ranks 11th in the Southland Conference. Over the last nine games, Marcet has been swinging a hot bat, hitting .440 with two homers and seven RBIs. Junior Ashley Ray has been the best run producer in the early going, leading the team with 20 RBIs and six home runs.

In the circle, all three pitchers have thrown at least two complete games with sophomore Ashton Bennett leading the staff in virtually every category. Bennett, who had only four starts last year, sports a 2.44 ERA with three wins in 43 innings pitched.

The Colonels will be trying to win their second road game in only their fourth chance but will have their hands full in facing South Alabama (12-3). The Jaguars played in the Red and Blue Classic at Ole Miss over the weekend and came away with a perfect 5-0 record.

As a team, USA is hitting at a blistering .390 mark while plating over eight runs per game. Brittany Fowler, who was recently named Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week, is hitting .478 with three homers and 22 RBIs. Including Fowler, the Jags have four players batting over .400.

Following Wednesday's matchup, Nicholls will make their 2011 debut at the Colonel Softball Complex on Saturday when they host Sam Houston State for a doubleheader. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.

Live stats for the game at South Alabama can be accessed by clicking here.