Nicholls coach Silva on Tulane loss: We can’t play that poorly and expect to win

It took 3:42 to decide the Nicholls-Tulane baseball game Tuesday night at Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray Didier Field.

It took Nicholls baseball coach Mike Silva only a few moments to explain what happened.

“We can’t play that poorly and expect to win – not at this level of baseball,” Silva said. “It’s about winning. We lost. We didn’t make enough plays to win. We lost. You can’t make errors like that. You don’t throw strikes, you lose. You don’t deserve to win. We didn’t deserve to win tonight. We need to improve. We built this team on pitching and defense. We didn’t pitch well enough. We didn’t play defense well enough. That’s just part of the game.”

The Colonels (11-3) committed five errors, allowed 15 hits, and had mental lapses that all added up to a 14-12 loss for Nicholls. Two of the Colonels’ three losses have come against Tulane. In an earlier encounter in New Orleans, Nicholls lost 3-2.

It was hardly an artistic triumph for Tulane. Green Wave pitchers surrendered 17 hits to the Colonels. Each pitching staff allowed 11 earned runs. Each team had innings in which they used three different pitchers.

A three-run home run by Nicholls first baseman Edgar Alvarez in the second inning, along with a run-scoring single by Drake Anderson in the third inning and another run in the inning on a fielder’s choice staked the Colonels to a 5-1 lead and Nicholls seemed as though it might be on its way to an easy win.

That was before the Green Wave (8-4) struck for six runs in the fourth inning.

Tulane pounded out four extra-base hits, including a pair of home runs to give the Green Wave a 7-5 lead.

Nathan Rose led off the inning with a home run in which Nicholls used three pitchers. A bases-loaded double by Colin Tuft added two more runs, making the score 5-4.

A sacrifice fly by Brad Marget and a two-run homer by Brock Slaton put the Greenies on top 7-5.

Tulane added a run in the top of the fifth to extend the lead to 8-5, but the Colonels nearly countered the Green Wave’s big inning by scoring five runs in the bottom of the sixth to retake the lead at 10-5.

A run-scoring single by Aaron Biediger produced the first run.

A walk by Garrett Felix loaded the bases. Basiel Williams hit a line drive off Tulane pitcher Carter Benbrook for a hit, allowing another run to score.

MaCrae Kendrick greeted new Tulane pitcher Jacob Moore with a single to right center, giving Nicholls a 9-8 lead. A sacrifice fly to center by Cade Crosby put Nicholls on top 10-8.

Tulane came up with runs in the top of the seventh on run-scoring singles by Schulz and Tuft. After Marget reached on an error when facing new Nicholls pitcher Nico Saltaformaggio. Saltaformaggio struck out the next two batters to leave the score tied 10-10.

The Green Wave took an 11-10 lead in the eighth inning when Jackson Linn smashed a double off the center field wall and extended the advantage to 14-10 with three runs in the top of the ninth inning.

In the bottom of the ninth, Narvin Booker Jr. led off with a double. A dropped fly ball by Linn, the Tulane left fielder on a ball hit by Jaden Collura, sent Colonel leadoff hitter Parker Coddou to the plate.

Coddou, who had three hits going into his final plate appearance, doubled to left center field to score Booker. On the play, Coddou continued on his way to third base before realizing Collura had stopped at third. Coddou was caught in a rundown for the first out of the inning.

After Biediger grounded out, Felix came up with a single back to the pitcher.

Williams hit a hard liner that third baseman James Agabedis grabbed to end the game.

Saltaformaggio (3-1), the fifth of six pitchers used by Nicholls, picked up the loss. He allowed four runs, only one of which was earned, on five hits and one walk, while striking out two.

Moore (1-0), the fourth of five pitches used by Tulane, picked up the win. He allowed no runs on two hits, while striking out two in 1 2/3 innings.

Trey Cehajic picked up his third save of the season, allowing one earned run on four hits and one walk in two innings of work.