Game One
Game Two

LAKE CHARLES, La. – For the second straight conference series, the Nicholls State University softball team came back from a game one doubleheader loss to take the nightcap, this time defeating McNeese State 3-2 after dropping the first contest, 8-0, on Tuesday night at Cowgirl Field.

With the split, Nicholls' overall record is at 12-27 and 6-8 in conference. McNeese sits at 26-17 and 9-7 in the Southland.

The Colonels continue their final road trip with four games in Texas, starting on Friday with a single game at UTSA. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Game One: McNeese State 8, Nicholls 0 (5 innings)
The Colonels were held to just one hit by McNeese starter Tiffany Denham and the Cowgirls pounded out 12 as McNeese won the opener 8-0 in five innings.

Katie Moulder (5-14) took the loss in the circle, giving up seven earned runs on 12 hits. She finished with one strikeout while walking none.

McNeese set the tone early with three runs, recording four hits in the opening frame that included two doubles. Rachel Moore then had the only hit for the Colonels, an infield single in the second inning. The Colonels put two on in the frame with one out, but McNeese turned a double play to end the inning.

For the rest of the game, only Ashley Bertot and Ashley Ray reached base for the Colonels, with each drawing a walk. Ray had no official at-bat in the game after being pitched around in both plate appearances.

The Cowgirls extended its lead to 5-0 in the fourth with a pair of runs before scoring three in the fifth, winning the game on a two-run double by Katie Roux.

Denham (10-8), the Southlander's leader in ERA at 1.62, finished with four strikeouts and three walks.

Game Two: Nicholls 3, McNeese State 2
Ashton Bennett tossed a complete game four-hitter and hit her first home run of the season, and Leah Andrus came through with the game winning two-run single as Nicholls won the nightcap against McNeese, 3-2.

McNeese scored in the first on a sacrifice fly, but Bennett answered with a leadoff home run over the leftcenter fence in the second. However, McNeese took the lead back in their at-bat, going up 2-1 on a wild pitch.

Trailing by a run, the Colonels recorded three of their four hits in the third to take the lead and never looked back. Bertot got things started with a single before beating out a play at second on a fielder's choice. After Ray drilled a single to center to load the bases, Andrus smacked a base hit to center to put Nicholls up 3-2.

Bennett cruised through the next four innings before McNeese got a one-out single in the seventh. On the next at-bat, Kat Angeles appeared to pull off a game ending double play, but after a discussion by the umpires, the runner was ruled safe at first. Following a wild pitch, Bennett forced a flyout to end the game.

Bennett improved to 6-8 on the year, with a 5-2 record in conference. She finished with three strikeouts while walking four.

Meagan Bond (15-8) took the loss, lasting 2.1 innings. She was charged with all three runs on four hits.