LAKE CHARLES, La. – The No. 1 seed Nicholls State University baseball team used a strong pitching performance by the SLC Freshman of the Year
Jacob Mayers to stay in the winners' bracket, eliminating Lamar University with a 4-0 victory Thursday afternoon in the 2023 Southland Conference Tournament at Joe Miller Ballpark.
The Colonels move to 32-22 on the year and take on the winner of tonight's New Orleans/Northwestern State game at 11 a.m. Friday in the winners' bracket semifinals. Lamar sees its season end at 32-23.
Mayers went 7.1 innings, striking out five and allowing six hits and two walks, but consistently worked around trouble. Lamar had runners in scoring position in three of his innings and he avoided runs each time.
The Colonels' defense executed double plays in the second, third, and fourth inning to help a pair of early runs stand up.
Nicholls started the scoring in the bottom of the first when
Austin Cain's two-out RBI single drove in
Xane Washington. In the next inning, Washington delivered an RBI base knock to put Nicholls ahead 2-0.
The lead was doubled in the fourth inning after three consecutive singles by Toups,
Kaden Amundson, and
Parker Coddou. Coddou's hit brought home one run, followed by a Washington sacrifice fly to make it 4-0.
Mayers and reliever
Chase Gearing (1.2 innings, two hits, one walk, two strikeouts, no runs) kept the run column empty to push the Colonels to the winners' bracket semifinals.
Nicholls had seven hits for the game and was able to take advantage of two early walks which resulted in the first two runs scored. Washington led the the way at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs, a steal and a walk. On defense, the All-Defensive honoree started the string of three consecutive innings with a double play as he gunned down a runner at the plate trying to score on a sacrifice fly in the second.
For Lamar, Tanner Wilson, Ethan Ruiz, and Josh Blankenship all had two hits apiece. Hunter Hesseltine was tagged with the loss, allowing four earned runs on six hits in 3.1 innings.
