HOUSTON, Texas - In a game that saw each team put up three or more runs twice for the lead, the final knockout punch was courtesy of Basiel Williams as he hit a grand slam in the eighth inning to fuel a 9-6 victory for the Nicholls State University baseball team at HCU on Saturday. 

Nicholls (26-14, 9-5 SLC) will go for the sweep on Sunday against the Huskies (13-26, 6-8 SLC), which would be its third in as many road SLC series this season. 

Trailing 6-4 in the eighth, Williams belted his fifth home run of the season and finished with his second five-RBI game in as many days. HCU loaded the bases after two walks and a hit-by-pitch, setting up the game-winning hit. Williams added an RBI in the ninth to make the final.

Devin Desandro (4-3) earned the win after throwing 2.0 innings of relief. Nico Saltaformaggio tossed two hitless innings for the save.

Nicholls had it own pitching troubles in the first as Jack Nelson walked the first three batters. Tyler LaRue cleared the bases with a double for an early 3-0 lead. Nelson settled in and left the game in the fourth without allowing another run.

Williams sparked a four-run fifth for the Colonels with a one-out double. Cade Crosby gave Nicholls its first run on a groundout and a Drake Anderson sac fly made it 3-2 Huskies. The next batter, Aaron Biediger, tied it up with a solo home run -- his fourth of the season. The final run of the frame was via an RBI triple by Parker Coddou, driving in Kade Turnage who doubled with two outs. 

In the sixth, the Huskies regained the lead after run-scoring singles by Ty Hodge and Katcher Halligan. Desandro threw the ball away on a pickoff for another run, but ended the inning with a pickoff to keep the deficit at 6-4. 

Williams came through in the clutch in the eighth as Nicholls improved to 8-0 on the road in SLC play. 

Edgar Alvarez had a hit and scored twice. Garrett Felix drew a pair of walks and also crossed the plate twice. 

ON DECK
Nicholls and HCU wrap up the series on Sunday at 2 p.m.