THIBODAUX, La.  – The Nicholls State University softball team will play its second Southland Conference series of the season at the Colonels hit the road for a three-game weekend series with Sam Houston State.
 
Nicholls (14-7, 2-1 SLC) and Sam Houston (7-15, 0-3 SLC) will open the set on Friday night at 6:30 p.m. with a doubleheader on Saturday schedule to begin at 3 p.m.
 
Nicholls is coming off a series win over Stephen F. Austin in its Southland opener, taking the last two games against the Ladyjacks. The Colonels had an opportunity to win all three games, but four errors in the first game led to all seven runs in SFA's 7-4 victory. The Colonels rallied in the second game for a 7-6 win and behind a one-hitter by Hannah Haydel, Nicholls won the series with a 2-1 victory on Sunday.
 
The Colonels are batting .315 as a team, led by Haley Stevenson's .452 average. Stevenson carries a six-game hitting streak into the series, which is the longest by any Colonel this season. After hitting .650 last week, Alexis Huss increased her batting average to .429.
 
Also with a big week was Haydel, who went 3-1 in the circle with a 0.00 earned run average. Haydel leads the Colonels with a 7-3 record for the season and a 1.72 ERA. Jackie Johnson has a sub-3.00 ERA as well, posting a 4-4 record with a 2.73 ERA and a team-high 47 strikeous. Taylor Hastings still remains undefeated on the year with a 3-0 record.
 
After going 7-11 in non-conference action, the Bearkats opened Southland play by getting swept by McNeese State. Sam Houston dropped the first game, 7-2, before losing the next two, 3-0 and 9-1. Their last outing was a 9-1 loss on Wednesday at No. 19 Texas A&M.
 
Sam Houston is hitting .274 as a team, led by Peyton Webb at .393. Webb has 24 hits on the year and has a team-high four doubles. Sarah Allison leads the team in RBIs, driving in 20 runs in 22 games.
 
In the circle, the Bearkats have struggled so far, posting a 6.73 ERA. Meme Quinn leads the team with a 3-3 record and 32 strikeouts.
 
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