THIBODAUX, La. - The Nicholls State University softball team wraps up its preconference slate with five games in the Black and Gold Tournament, hosted by Alabama State, starting Friday, Feb. 28 in Montgomery.

Nicholls (7-11) will square off against Eastern Kentucky (10 a.m.) to start things off on Friday, before its rematch with Mercer at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Nicholls will have another contest against Mercer (2 p.m.) before playing host ASU at 7 p.m. Sunday features another Colonels vs. Colonels matchup against EKU at 11:30 a.m.

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Nicholls played its final home midweek game of the year on Mardi Gras Tuesday and it was one for the ages. Hosting South Alabama, which had an 11-game winning streak in the series, the squads were deadlocked at 3-3 through four innings and neither team could break the tie in the next 11 scoreless frames. In the 16th, the Colonels used a leadoff error and two infield singles to load the bases, resulting in a walkoff single by Caitlin Garcia.

Sophomore Jordan Moon posted one of the best pitching performances in her young career, totaling 9.2 innings and seven strikeouts in a relief appearance. She held USA without a hit until the 15th inning and only allowed two in the victory. Moon leads the Colonel staff with a 2.53 ERA and 35 strikeouts.

The Colonels produced 13 hits in the win, led by another sophomore, Kennedy Hebert, who went 3 for 7 at the plate. The Morgan City native has been one of the best hitters in the Southland Conference so far this season, ranking in the top 10 with a .453 batting average. Hebert is second on the team with 11 RBIs, trailing only Garcia's 13. 

EKU brings a sparkling 12-2 record into the tournament, which includes a 5-4 win over Mercer. They have won eight straight after sweeping all five games last weekend in UNC-Wilmington Tournament.

Mercer, which also fell to Nicholls earlier this year, 4-3, is 8-8 on the year. The Bears hosted a tournament over the weekend and went 3-1, defeating Akron, Georgia State, and Presbyterian.

Alabama State is 6-9 following a six-inning loss to Georgia on Tuesday. One of their losses this year was in the opening weekend against Southland member Southeastern Louisiana. 

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