Nicholls baseball remains hopeful despite dropping weekend games

Despite dropping all three of their weekend games in the Kleberg Bank College Classic last weekend, the Nicholls State University baseball team has shifted gears in preparation to face in-state rival, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, this Wednesday, Feb. 28.

GAME RECAPS
Last Friday, the Colonels started off the weekend by taking a 12-1 loss to the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders. Nicholls tallied seven hits by seven different athletes while the Islanders managed 16 hits on the night. The Colonels remained scoreless until the ninth inning where a pinch-hit from sophomore Dillon Belle resulted in a homerun. The Islanders scored runs in innings one through five.

On Saturday, the matchup between Nicholls and Mississippi State University resulted in a 14-4 defeat.

The Bulldogs racked up 19 hits, while the Colonels trailed with only 10. Giving up 13 runs in the first four innings hurt the Colonels, but a few Colonels managed multiple hits. Senior shortstop Joey Morales brought in all four of the runs, including a three-run homer in the fifth and an RBI single in the ninth.

Seniors Kyle Knauth and Gage Teer also had multiple hits.

Closing out the weekend last Sunday, the Colonels crept back into the competition against the University of California Santa Barbara, but slipped away in an 8-6 loss. An explosive eighth inning allowed the Colonels to score five runs and come back from a score of 7-1. The Colonels were able to match the Gauchos’ 13 hits on the game and even after multiple-hit games from Knauth, Morales, junior Brady Bell and senior Chet Niehaus, they surrendered another winning result.

BEST IN THE BOOT
Although the Colonels are currently 1-6 on the season, a rocky start has not prevented the team from getting focused and motivated to face one of their in-state rivals, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, this Wednesday.

According to senior outfielder Lee Clark, keeping a positive mindset this week and throughout the entire season will be crucial.

“It’s always tough getting off to a rough start, but I know this team is special,” Clark said. “We must stay positive, strong minded and keep giving it everything we’ve got to be the best team we can be.”

Clark said that putting the weekend games behind them and focusing on their opponent in ULL is important, because one of the team’s season goals is to be the best team in the state of Louisiana.

“Wednesday is extremely important. It is one of our season goals to be the best team in Louisiana,” Clark said. “It is going to be a great feeling when we go there Wednesday and leave with a win to get our season back on track and get on the winning side of things, just in time to start conference play.”

LOOKING AHEAD
After the game in Lafayette vs. the Ragin’ Cajuns, the Colonels will head to Pensacola, Florida, for the Cox Diamond Invitational. Nicholls is scheduled to face off against Ohio State University on Friday, Eastern Michigan University on Saturday and the University of Southern Miss on Sunday.