THIBODAUX, La. - The Nicholls State University softball team begins its Southland Conference schedule with a trip to Northwestern State for a three-game series at Demon Diamond.
Saturday's doubleheader is scheduled for 2 p.m. with Sunday's finale set for 12 p.m. All three games will be on ESPN+.
Nicholls heads into league play with a 12-10 overall record. The Colonels played a loaded nonconference slate so far with losses to ranked LSU and Florida State, along with Big 12 member Houston. Nicholls also faced two Sun Belt programs -- Louisiana and ULM, coming away with one victory in the four combined games.
The Colonels rank third in the Southland with a .295 batting average and had eight games with 10 or more hits -- all resulting in victories. The offense pounded out a season-high 14 hits in an 11-1 run-rule win over FIU.
Molly VandenBout ranks in the Top 10 of the SLC with a team-best .386 average and is second with 18 RBIs. She's also tied for second with five home runs. She is one of four Colonels batting .300 or better, joined by
Reagan Heflin (.350),
Alexa Poche' (.321) and
Claire Sisco (.306).
In the circle,
Molly Yoo and
Audrey McNeill have both tossed 45-plus innings and a combined five complete games. Yoo is 3-3 on the season with a 2.63 ERA while McNeill is 5-6 with a 2.74 ERA.
Averi Paden also has three wins and sports a 4.20 ERA.
Northwestern State enters league play with an 11-12 overall record. Like the Colonels, the Lady Demons defeated UTSA and UMass, while also picking up a win over ACC's Syracuse.
NSU's offense features a pair of batters flirting with a .350 average -- Tristin Court and Taylor Williams. Court leads the Lady Demons with seven doubles and 13 RBIs.
Maggie Darr and Kenzie Seely have carried the load in the circle, combining for 114 of the staff's 148.2 innings pitched. Seely is the reigning Southland Pitcher of the Week.
NSU took three of the four meetings last season which included a series win in Thibodaux. The teams met again in the Southland Conference Tournament with the Lady Demons earning an 8-2 victory in eight innings.
