NACOGDOCHES, Texas – After battling rain all weekend, the Nicholls State University softball team opened conference play with a 5-3 victory at Stephen F. Austin before falling to the Ladyjacks in game two, 6-1, on Sunday afternoon at SFA Softball Field.
The Colonels (14-10, 1-1) were scheduled for a three-game series against SFA (10-13, 1-1), but the weather pushed the series back to Sunday, and one game was canceled. Nicholls will return to conference play this weekend as they host Sam Houston State for a three-game set.
Game 1 – Nicholls 5, SFA 3 Senior
Hannah Haydel tossed a two-hit complete game and
Kristen Ahearn hit a two-run double to cap a four-run fifth as Nicholls claimed a 5-3 victory over SFA.
The Colonels jumped out to a 1-0 lead after
Amanda Gianelloni made the Ladyjacks' pay for a two-out error as she brought home a run on a double to left.
Haydel was perfect through three innings, but ran into trouble in the fourth as she walked two batters and served up a three-run shot to
Faith Talley. She allowed another single in the frame, but went on to retire the next 10 batters.
In the Colonels' fifth, the offense tallied four hits to retake the lead.
Gretchen Morgan and
Jessica Taylor recorded RBI singles to tie the game, and Ahearn delivered a double to left center to make the score 5-3.
Haydel (7-4) struck out four batters in the win and walked two. At the plate, Morgan finished 3-for-3 for the game while
Alexis Huss was 2-for-2.
Game 2 – SFA 6, Nicholls 1 SFA hit three longs ball to account for six runs in the first two innings, and the Colonels were unable to recover as they stranded nine runners in a 6-1 loss.
The Ladyjacks jumped all over Colonel starter
Megan Landry (7-5) early, hitting two homers in the first inning for a 3-0 lead. Brittany Lewis got things started with a 2-run shot with two outs, then the next batter, Faith Talley, followed with a solo homer.
Nicholls got one back in the second on an RBI single by
Kayla Prater, but
Taylor Fraccastoro hit a 3-run homer to double the lead. Landry gave up a one-out single to start the frame before
Hannah Haydel came in for relief. She hit the first batter that she faced before Franccastoro's homer gave SFA a 6-1 lead.
The Colonels drew a pair of walks off of Callee Guffey in the third, but left both runners on base. In the fifth, Nicholls put two more on with another walk and a single by Gianelloni, but once again Guffey was able to get out unscathed.
Brooke Morris and Gianelloni singled in the seventh to make one last attempt for a comeback before Guffey forced a flyout to end the game.
Both teams finished with six hits, with Gianelloni leading Nicholls with two. Landry lasted 2.1 innings, allowing four runs on four hits. Haydel pitched 3.2 innings and was charged with two earned runs.
Guffey struck out five in the complete game effort to improve to 3-2 on the season.
