Final Stats 1 | Final Stats 2 Complete Stats Were Not Provided
 
HAMMOND, La. – The Nicholls State University softball team opened up the season with a 15-0 mercy-rule victory over Southern before falling in the nightcap, 5-1, to Nebraska-Omaha on Friday at Chappapeela Park.
 
The Colonels had a comfortable 7-0 lead over Southern in the first game before blowing it wide open with eight runs in the fifth inning. Against Nebraska-Omaha, Nicholls let a 1-0 lead slip by in the last two innings.
 
Nicholls will continue action in the Lion Classic on Saturday with games against Texas-Arlington (12:30 p.m.) and Alcorn State (3 p.m.).
 
Game 1 – Nicholls 15, Southern 0 (5 innings)
 
Freshman Payton Gremillion and sophomore Haley Stevenson combined for eight of the Colonels' 18 hits as Nicholls run-ruled Southern in five innings with a 15-0 shutout.
 
Nicholls jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first when Gremillion singles, stole two bases and came around to score on a sacrifice fly. Two innings later, a leadoff double by Gremillion made way for a RBI single by Kayla Prater. Jessica Taylor then drove in Prater with a double to give Nicholls a 3-0 lead.
 
In the fourth, Haley Parkerson brought home a run on a sacrifice fly before Danielle Phillips gave Nicholls a 6-0 cushion with a two-run double. The Colonels tacked on one more run to move closer to the mercy rule. An inning later, Nicholls batted around to plate eight runs to put the run-rule into affect.
 
Southern, which had only two hits in the loss, would go down in order in the bottom of the fifth to give Nicholls a season-opening victory.
 
Game 2 – Nebraska-Omaha 5, Nicholls 1
 
The Colonels plated a run in the first and rode the arm of sophomore Jackie Johnson for the next four innings, but Nebraska-Omaha was finally able to crack the scoring column with a two-run homer in the sixth and the Mavs added three insurance runs in the seventh to knock off Nicholls, 5-1.
 
Johnson fanned 11 batters in the loss, allowing five runs on nine hits. Both offenses collected nine hits, with Gremillion and Parkerson leading Nicholls with two each.
 
The Colonels struck first in the opening frame as Phillips brought home a run on a groundout. Nicholls continued to manufacture hits, getting two in the third and fourth innings before recording three in the fifth, but could never add to the lead.
 
With only six more outs remaining, the Mavs quickly took the lead in the sixth when Tonya Peterson smacked a 2-run homer. In the seventh, UNO used the long ball again, this time getting a 3-run shot by Allie Mathewson.
 
UNO allowed a leadoff single in the seventh before retiring the next three Colonels for the win.