Cole Stapler
Misty Leigh McElroy
0
Nicholls NICH 4-3
5
Winner Mississippi State MS 4-2
Nicholls NICH
4-3
0
Final
5
Mississippi State MS
4-2
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Nicholls NICH 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
Mississippi State MS 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 3 X 5 12 1

W: A Sexton (1-1) L: Stapler, Cole (1-1)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Mississippi State Slips Past Nicholls, 5-0

STARKVILLE, Miss. – The Nicholls State University baseball team hung with Mississippi State for the majority of the game on Saturday, but the Bulldogs pulled away late, escaping with a 5-0 victory at Dudy Noble Field.
 
After a five-inning scoreless pitching duel, Mississippi State (4-2) broke the stalemate with a two-run sixth. The Bulldogs opened the frame with back-to-back singles, before a double scored one. The subsequent batter laid down a successful sacrifice bunt, giving Mississippi State a 2-0 advantage.
 
The Bulldogs mounted a two-out rally in the bottom of the eighth, scoring three runs before the Colonels (4-3) were able to close out the inning.
 
Mississippi State retired three straight batters in the ninth to seal the win.
 
Joey Morales, Brandon Harigel and Alex Shermer registered the only three hits for Nicholls on the day.
 
Jacob Robson paced the Bulldogs with a 3-for-4 outing and an RBI, while Ryan Gridley had two RBIs and a run scored.
 
Cole Stapler (1-1) took the loss, despite five solid scoreless innings of work. Stapler allowed two runs on eight hits, with two strikeouts through 5 2/3 innings of work. Zach Thiac pitched 2/3 scoreless innings. Daniel Goff allowed one run on one hit through one inning of work, while Mike Hanchar gave up two runs on two hits through 1/3 innings. Adam Tarver tossed the final 1/3 innings for the Colonels.
 
Austin Sexton (1-1) was unstoppable on Saturday, recording 11 strikeouts in a complete-game shutout.
 
Nicholls will face UMass Lowell at noon on Sunday, followed immediately by a game against the Bulldogs at 3:30 p.m. to finish the weekend.
 
PROBABLE STARTING ROTATION:
 
NICHOLLS (Sun. Game 1) - RHP Jake Smith (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 8 SO, 6.0 IP)
NICHOLLS (Sun. Game 2) - LHP Alex Ernestine (1-0, 5.40 ERA, 6 SO, 5.0 IP)
 
UMASS LOWELL - None Announced
 
MISSISSIPPI STATE (Sun.) - RHP Zac Houston (0-0, 2.45, 3 SO, 3.2 IP)
 
Following this weekend's action, Nicholls will host No. 5 LSU at 6 p.m. on Wednesday at Ray E. Didier Field.
 
For the most up-to-date information on Nicholls baseball, visit geauxcolonels.com.