THIBODAUX, La. – The Nicholls State University baseball team is set to host a three-game Easter weekend series against Southland Conference opponent Sam Houston State, beginning Thursday at Ray E. Didier Field.
 
The Colonels (10-11, 2-4 SLC) will face the Bearkats (9-12, 3-3 SLC) at 6 p.m. on Thursday and 6 p.m. on Good Friday, before closing out the series at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
 
Sam Houston owns a 54-29 edge in the all-time series against Nicholls, and earned a 2-1 series win last season in Huntsville.
 
The Colonels have shown glimpses of their potential throughout the year, but have yet to put their full talent on display. That task won't get any easier after Nicholls lost its offensive leader, Kyle Reese, to a gruesome injury against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi over the weekend.
 
The Bearkats opened their season with five consecutive losses, before an impressive three-game sweep of Oklahoma. In league play, Sam Houston suffered a 2-1 series loss at the hands of New Orleans, before responding with a 2-1 series victory over Northwestern State.
 
Gavin Wehby spearheads the Colonel offense, batting .379 with 14 runs and 10 RBIs. Wehby has elevated his play against conference opponents, hitting .455 with a .545 slugging percentage. Ethan Valdez leads Nicholls in both runs (15) and stolen bases (nine).
 
Bryce Johnson leads the Bearkats offensively with a .384 average, 17 runs scored an 10 stolen bases. Matt Broadbent has a team-high 15 RBIs.
 
Probable Pitching Rotation:
 
Nicholls:
RHP Justin Sinibaldi  (2-2, 3.00 ERA, 29 SO, 33.0 IP)
RHP Daniel Goff         (0-0, 2.45 ERA, 11 SO, 22.0 IP)
RHP Cole Stapler       (2-2, 3.06 ERA, 23 SO, 32.1 IP)
 
Sam Houston:
RHP Sam Odom         (1-0, 3.47 ERA, 30 SO, 36.1 IP)
RHP Heath Donica     (2-2, 3.58 ERA, 24 SO, 32.2 IP)
RHP Riley Gossett     (2-0, 1.88 ERA, 21 SO, 28.2 IP)
 
Following Sunday's contest, the Colonels will battle an even more important opponent as they join the fight against childhood cancer. The team will shave their heads in support of the Vs. Cancer Foundation, which is dedicated to saving kids' lives by empowering athletes and communities to fund lifesaving childhood cancer efforts.
 
You can join the fight too! Visit the Nicholls Baseball Vs. Cancer page at team.vs-cancer.org/nichollsbaseball to make a donation. To learn more visit VS-CANCER.ORG or follow the organization on twitter @VS_CANCER.
 
The Colonels will host Louisiana-Lafayette at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 29 live on Cox Sports Television. Nicholls will then travel to Biloxi, Miss. for a neutral site matchup against South Alabama at 7 p.m. on March 30.
 
For the most up-to-date information on Nicholls baseball, visit geauxcolonels.com.