HOUSTON, Texas - The Nicholls State University softball team led twice against Houston, but the Cougars scored seven runs in the fourth inning as part of nine unanswered as the Colonels were defeated, 11-3, in five innings Saturday night in the Houston Classic.
With the loss, Nicholls fell to 5-5 on the season while Houston upped its record to 8-1. The Colonels will wrap up the weekend on Sunday with a 9 a.m. game against UMass.
Nicholls was outhit against Houston, 9-4, but one of the hits for the Red and Gray was a two-run home run by
Claire Sisco for an early 2-0 lead in the second. After Houston tied the game in the fourth,
Brynne Songy gave the Colonels a 3-2 lead on a sacrifice fly. But it was all Cougars the rest of the way.
Houston scored seven runs in the bottom half of the frame, using five hits while taking advantage of two Colonel errors. Bree Cantu ended the inning with a two-run double for a 9-3 advantage.
Then in the fifth, the Cougars plated two more runs to end the game via run-rule.
Audrey McNeill suffered the loss in relief, allowing one earned run on three hits. Houston scored a total of six runs against her, but five were unearned.
Katy Sanders pitched the rest of the way, giving up two earned runs on four hits in 1.1 innings and struck out two.
Molly Yoo started in the circle and surrendered three runs on two hits in 3.0 innings.
Molly VandenBout accounted for half of the Colonels' hit, going 2-for-2 with a double.
Samantha Gwiazda also had an infield single. The home run for Sisco was the first of her career.
