Led by slugger Amy Thibodeaux, who crushed her 12th home run of the season, the Lady Colonels softball team swept the Northwestern State Demons last weekend in three games, 8-0, 8-0, 9-5, at Natchitoches. That homer tied the Nicholls State single-season record set last year by Danielle Clayton.
Northwestern State (7-31, 3-14) looked to senior Mallorie Thornton to lead the team against Nicholls. Thornton has a .692 batting average and is 9 for 13 in SLC play, with five runs scored and two RBI. The Demons head coach Becky McMurtry said she wanted to get off to a great start this weekend in the conference.
“It is something we started last week, and [we] look to keep moving forward this weekend,” McMurtry said.
The Demons hoped to rely on weapon Sophomore Randi Stuard who had hit .417 in the last four games and who nailed her third home run of the season against North Texas the Wednesday before.
Colonel senior Kat Harrell leads the Southland with 51 hits and ranks second in batting average (.425) and fifth in stolen bases.
The Colonels (22-20, 10-8) took a 1-0 lead in the top of third when Clayton hit double to left center to score junior Kodi Butler all the way from first. The Demons fired back with two runs in their half of the third to take the 2-1 lead.
Northwestern State extended their lead in the bottom of the fourth when senior Krystalin Ensminger allowed a bases-loaded walk before getting Stuard to ground out to end the inning with the Demons on top, 3-1.
Nicholls’ bats came alive with a seven-run fifth inning to retake the lead, 8-3. The Colonels extended the inning after sophomore Lacey Gros smacked a two RBI double to left field to bring home sophomore Karla Troxler.
Nicholls went on to score three more runs in light of Demon errors and walks to take a healthy 8-3 lead. Northwestern State responded with two runs in the bottom of the fifth to make the score 8-5. Thibodeaux now has 28 career homeruns and is currently one away from tying Karen Allen’s career record.
“I was pleased with how we hit today and how we played defensively,” head coach Jenny Parsons said.
Nicholls hit the .500 mark with its wins and has added two conference wins this season, the other against Central Arkansas.
At the last game, Nicholls sweept the series hosting South Alabama.
Nicholls fought through the first game to win 2-1 in extra innings and took advantage of a key South Alabama mistake in the second game to emerge 5-4 Wednesday afternoon in the Colonel Softball Complex.
The Colonels fell behind early in the first game after the Jaguars took a 1-0 lead after a throwing error by sophomore pitcher Lacey Gros. Gros overthrew senior Thibodeaux at first base that allowed South Alabama’s, Evelyn Pare to score in the first inning.
Despite the error, Gros settled down in the circle and threw all eight innings allowing only one run on three hits, while also striking out seven to improve to 5-3 on the season. South Alabama’s, Beth Pilgrim chalked the loss as she allowed five hits and two runs through 7 1/3 innings of work.
Harrell led the Colonels at the plate as she had three of Nicholls’ five hits to finish 3 for 4. Also recording hits were Butler and Lay as they each finished 1 for 3 with a RBI. The second game remained scoreless until the top of the fourth when the Jaguars took a 1-0 lead. In the fifth, South Alabama added three runs to take a 4-0 lead.
In the bottom of the fifth, Nicholls’ bats helped scored five runs on four hits to take the 5-4 lead.
The next series starts at home hosting Stephen F. Austin on April 12 at 1 pm.
