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THIBODAUX, La.  – Riding an eight-game winning streak, the Nicholls State University softball team will battle for the Southland Conference regular-season title as the Colonels welcome Lamar to Swanner Field for the final three games of the season.
 
With rain in the weekend forecast, the series now opens with a Friday doubleheader scheduled for 5 p.m., while Saturday's Senior Day finale is slated for 3 p.m. The teams were originally scheduled to play two on Saturday.
 
Three teams were tied for first place in the Southland standings heading into last weekend, but only Nicholls came away unscathed and now leads Stephen F. Austin and Southeastern Louisiana by 1.0 games. Defending champion McNeese is also still in the hunt at 2.0 games back, and they will square off against SLU this weekend. SFA heads to Abilene Christian, which is fighting for one of the three remaining spots in next week's Southland Conference Tournament. At 11-13 in conference, Lamar (28-25) is currently in eighth and leads Sam Houston by a game for the final spot.
 
Two seasons ago, Nicholls needed help in the final weekend for a shot at its first title since 1996, but this year, the Colonels (35-13, 18-6 SLC) control their fate. A sweep of the Cardinals would secure an outright regular season championship and the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament. If the Colonels win two games, they would claim at least a share of the title.
 
Nicholls has been the top team statistically in the Southland, leading the league in batting average (.310) and ERA (2.12). Last weekend in the road finale at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, the Colonels did not have a letdown against the last-place Islanders, belting 36 hits for a .439 average in the three-game sweep. The pitching staff was just as dominant, holding AMCC to a .105 average on six hits while allowing only one run.
 
Megan Landry added two more wins to her outstanding junior season resume, making her the lone 20-game winner in the Southland. At 20-7 on the year, not only has Landry been able to rack up wins, but her 1.71 ERA leads the SLC and ranks 57th in the NCAA. Freshman Alexis LaBure has also had a significant role in the Colonels' 31st nationally-rated earned run average, going 11-4 with a 2.43 ERA. LaBure and Landry each have over 100 strikeouts on the year, putting them both in the top 5 of the Southland.
 
LaBure isn't the only freshman to deliver for the Colonels this season, as center fielder Kelsey Miller and third base Jewel Lara have had big years offensively in league play. Lara is batting .397 for the Red and Gray, while Miller is close behind at .390. Even rookie outfielder Corynn Major has joined the hit parade as she went 7-for-9 at the plate last weekend and earned honorable mention for SLC Hitter of the Week. Major and Miller both carry seven-game hitting streaks into the season finale.
 
Overall, juniors Kasey Frederick and Amanda Gianelloni are batting .373 and .351, respectively, and are responsible for one-third of the Colonels' RBIs. Frederick leads the team with six home runs and 36 RBIs, while Gianelloni has five homers and 34 RBIs. Senior Moriah Strother, who will be honored for Senior Day along with Julia Bailey, also has six home runs – all coming in April – and is batting .375.
 
Lamar is coming off a series win against UIW, taking the first two before dropping its home finale, 5-3. The Cardinals had lost five in a row but responded by winning four straight which included the two games against the league's other Cardinals.
 
The team is batting .282 on the year and is paced by Savana Guidry (.358), Kelly Meeuwsen (.345) and Kendall Talley (.344). Shelby Henderson has been one of the league's top run producers, driving in 42 to tie for fourth in the Southland. Guidry brings a six-game hitting streak to Thibodaux, with five of the six consisting of two or more hits.
 
LU's pitching staff holds a 3.58 ERA, ranking sixth in the SLC. Laura Napoli has started 27 games and is 13-14 with a 3.17 ERA, while Taylor Gruell is 9-7 with a 3.67 ERA. The duo has combined for 112 strikeouts on the year.
 
The Colonels and Cardinals closed out the season the last three years, with Lamar winning the series in 2015 before Nicholls took the '16 and '17 matchups. Neither team has swept in the previous three series, and each squad has a postseason win against the other in the last two years.
 
For the latest news on Colonel softball, follow the team on Twitter @Nicholls_SB.