THIBODAUX – The Northwestern State softball team set season highs in both runs and hits in Friday’s series finale at Nicholls, but it could not piece together enough pitching, falling in a 12-11 slugfest to the Colonels.
After winning the second game of the series Thursday, ending a 16-game Colonels winning streak, the Demons (6-41, 3-21) nearly won the series but Nicholls rallied to prevail. Northwestern worked back from a 4-0 first-inning deficit thanks to an 8-run top of the fourth to take a 10-4 lead. The Colonels (28-21, 17-7) responded with three runs in the bottom of the inning, adding two more in the fifth and three in the sixth to regain the lead and win the game.
“We came out with purpose and intent today at the plate and I am really proud of how we responded after that first inning,” head coach Jenny Fuller said. “We got those timely hits we’ve been missing at times this year and just kept passing the bat. Anytime you score 11 runs you expect to win those games, we just gave up too many free passes and Nicholls took advantage of it throughout the game.”
The Demons put together their most explosive offensive inning of the season to storm into the lead.
With runners at second and third an no outs, Savannah Coleman looped a ball into shallow center to score Riley Schwisow from third. After swiping second on the first and third situation, Cash Herber delivered in a similar fashion to tie the game at four on another flare into shallow center.
Two batter later Aly Delafield shot one through the right side bringing in two and giving the Demons the 6-4 lead. DJ Lynch added to the lead with the third RBI single of the inning and moved to third on a Brynn Daniel double two pitches later.
In her second plate appearance of the inning, Schwisow was hit by a pitch for the second time on the weekend to load the bases. Sophia Livers split the gap in right center on the third pitch of the at-bat scoring all three runners and giving NSU a 10-4 lead.
The eight-run inning was the most in the single frame this year and the first time the Demons have scored more than seven runs in an inning since 2023. It was the most runs in an inning in a conference game since a nine spot at UIW in 2021.
After turning six of the eight total free passes into runs, the Colonels needed no help in the sixth to regain the lead. A solo home run tied the game at 10, and after a base hit up the middle, a pinch-hit two-run homer gave Nicholls the 12-10 lead.
The Demons had one more surge in them in the top of the seventh, getting back-to-back doubles from Herber and pinch-hitter Tori Clayton, pulling back within a run, but a soft grounder to first ended the rally.
Herber finished a home run shy of the cycle with a 3-for-4 day at the plate, one game after Delafield did the same. The eight extra-base hits were the most in a game this year and the most by the Demons in a game since 2021.
TENNIS: In Nacogdoches, Texas, Saturday, Stephen F. Austin secured a hard-fought 4-3 victory over Northwestern to spoil the Lady Demons’ unbeaten Southland Conference tennis record and create a three-way tie for the regular-season conference championship.
“SFA competed very well,” said second-year NSU coach Marcos Morelli. “Congratulations to them on a great win.”
The Lady Demons, SFA and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi all share the regular season title with 8-1 league records.
The Ladyjacks (14-6, 8-1) set the tone early by claiming the doubles point, then posted two straight-set singles victories to move to the brink of clinching the match.
Northwestern (9-7, 8-1) fought back, as Pika Doberlet won 7-5, 6-2, in straight sets over SFA’s Antonella Taco Villarreal to cut the match score to 3-1. NSU’s Ayu Ishibashi edged Ana Paula Chavez in two tight sets, 7-5, 7-5, to cut the deficit to 3-2.
However, SFA’s clincher came when Sonja Rooth won 6-2, 7-6 over Maria Farina and sealed the victory for the Ladyjacks.
Northwestern heads to the Southland Conference Tournament Wednesday in Thibodaux.
“There are a lot of tough teams, and it’s shaping up to be a great tournament — we’re looking forward to the challenge,” said Morelli. “This team is capable of doing great things.”
TRACK AND FIELD: Relay teams highlighted the second and final day of competition from the Northwestern track and field teams Saturday at the Michael Johnson Invitational hosted by Baylor in Waco, Texas.
Both of the men’s relay teams posted season bests and all three NSU foursomes finished in the top three of their events.
The men’s 4×100 quartet of Galen Loyd, Mikkel Johansson, Elijah Rowe and Tavis Wilson clocked a 39.74 to place third and beat their previous season best (39.80) at the Leon Johnson NSU Invitational last week.
Just as they started the day with a season best, they finished the same way. The group of Loyd, Rowe, Vincente Graiani and William Achee ran a 3:09.70 in the 4×400 relay to finish second in the relay.
The women’s 4×400 relay also finished second, as the quartet of Maygan Shaw, Tranasia Jones, Samari Finney and Margaret Conteh ran a season-low 3:36.49.
“The relays ran very, very well with the weather conditions very windy,” head coach Mike Heimerman said. “Those four ran very well in the 4×1. Very good for those guys.”
NSU will travel to Baton Rouge this weekend for Saturday’s LSU Alumni Gold meet.
