Nicholls baseball nears end of regular season

After stealing the series victory over the Lamar University Cardinals last weekend, the Nicholls State University baseball team is approaching the final stretch of their regular season beginning this week in a mid-week matchup against Prairie View A&M University.

GAME RECAPS
In the first game against the Cardinals last Friday, March 27, Lamar took an early lead in the second winning when they hammered twelve runs on the board. They maintained the lead throughout the game, scoring one more in the sixth and three in the eighth. The final result was 16-9.

The Colonels tried to answer in the fourth, sixth and eighth, with three runs in each respective inning. Nicholls used six different pitchers throughout the game, including senior left-handed starter Alex Ernestine and sophomore left-handed pitcher Bryan Taylor, who closed out the night.

The Colonels found victory the next day in a much lower-scoring game that resulted in a 6-1 final score. Senior right-handed pitcher Cayden Hatcher pitched nine straight innings, and allowed only one run while striking four out.

After three scoreless innings for both teams, Lamar tacked the first run on the board in the fifth, but Nicholls answered with one of their own in the fifth. The next five frames were left blank by the Cardinals, while the Colonels added five more in the eighth.

In the rubber match, the Colonels took the series win in a 5-2 victory after scoring the first run and maintaining the lead throughout.

Senior infielders Joey Morales and Ethan Valdez each notched three hits apiece at the plate for the Colonels.

DYNAMIC DUO
After his stellar performance on the mound in the second game of the series against Lamar, it was announced this Monday that Hatcher was named Southland Conference (SLC) Player of the Week.

Hatcher is the second Colonel to receive this honor this season. He joins his teammate and roommate, Ernestine, on the list after he was also named the SLC Pitcher of the Week earlier in March.

After earning the honor, Hatcher said it was great to join Ernestine, and that he owes it to his solid defense.

“It was awesome,” Hatcher said. “Especially after my roommate, Alex Ernestine, also got the award earlier in the year, so I thought I should join him. But none of it could have been done without my defense behind me making plays like they always do.”

Hatcher’s play during the game gave the Colonels momentum, and helped them find victory, which forced last Sunday’s rubber-match against the Cardinals.

Currently, Hatcher boasts a 3.55 ERA and a 31:12 strikeout-to- walk ratio.