Nicholls softball team drops two to visiting Ole Miss with SLC series with McNeese up next

Ole Miss scored four runs in the seventh inning of the second game on it way to a double-header sweep of Nicholls in softball action Wednesday in Thibodaux, but the major damage for the Rebels came a bit earlier.

The Rebels scored five runs in the fourth inning on their way to a 9-1 win over Nicholls.

Ole Miss captured the double-header by also taking the opening game 4-1 in a contest in which the Rebels came up with a pair of timely extra-base hits, while Nicholls was unable to push across runs with runners in scoring position.

Nicholls had taken a 1-0 lead in the first inning of the second game when Reagan Heflin walked with one out and advanced to second on a ground out before scoring on an Alexa Poche double to left center field.

Then came the big fourth inning for Ole Miss.

After Paige Smith opened the inning with a single off of Nicholls pitcher Aubrey McNeill, Lexie Brady belted a two-run home run to center field and Ole Miss was quickly on top 2-1.

Following a double by Aynslie Furbush, pinch runner Taylor Malvin advanced to third on a ground out to first base by Delaney Rummell. An Annie Orman single made it 3-1.

With two outs, a single by Catelyn Riley put runners on second and first. A single up the middle by Jaiden Pone and a couple of botched throws in the infield on the play, allowed two more runs to give Ole Miss a 5-1 lead.

“It’s happened to us numerous times this year,” Nicholls coach Justin Lewis said of the mistake-filled big inning. “Sooner or later we’re going to get tired of doing that to ourselves realize most of these games that we’ve lost this year, we beat ourselves. Stuff like that, we have to minimize.”

Despite being roughed up, McNeill returned to pitch through the sixth inning.

“She wanted to work her way out of it,” said Lewis. “She knew her focus went down that inning and it cost her. We gave her opportunity to work through it, and she was better after that.”

“Teams that are more talented than you,” continued Lewis, motioning his fingers as he said, ‘better than you’ to signify air quotes, “you can’t afford to not focus. Unfortunately, we’re still kind of learning those lessons the hard way.”

McNeill (7-7) ended up allowing four earned runs on eight hits and a walk, while striking out six batters.

Molly Yoo pitched the seventh inning and allowed four runs.

Riley (2-2) picked up the win, allowing one run on seven hits and a walk while striking out eight in going the distance.

Although the Lady Colonels managed to score only two runs in total, they did produce 12 hits over the course of the double-header.

“We hit some SEC pitching pretty hard today and lot of them didn’t fall,” Lewis said. “They have an excellent defense on the left side. You have to tip your hat to them, but I think we are in pretty good position going in here to play McNeese.”

Nicholls, which is 3-0 in the Southland Conference, begins a three-game series against nemesis McNeese State, starting with a double-header slated to begin at 4 p.m. Friday.

“In my two years here, we haven’t beaten McNeese. We played them a little bit better last year, but we will have to be a lot better. I feel real good where we’re at as a team and pitching staff. We will see what happens with it,” said Lewis.

Ole Miss 4, Nicholls 1: The Rebels scored two runs in each of the first and third innings to take the opening game of the double-header.

A two-run home run by Bradley in the top of the first inning staked Ole Miss to the early lead.

Nicholls had runners on third and first in the bottom of the first inning but was unable to score.

The Lady Colonels missed an opportunity in the second inning when Ole Miss pitcher Makenna Kliethermes walked the first two Nicholls batters but retired the next three to avoid any damage.

Ole Miss’ two runs in the third inning came on a two-out double to left field by Furbush.

Nicholls had runners on second and third with two outs in the bottom of the third inning but again was unable to score.

“We had our chances. The biggest thing was they got the big hit. They got two doubles with runners on and we had plenty of runners on and never got the big hit,” said Lewis. “We get a couple of those to fall, it’s a whole different game. If we make pitches a little bit different, it’s a whole different game. It was disappointing to not come out of here with the win. This was a day that I thought we had a chance to get one of them.”

The lone run for Nicholls came in the bottom of the seventh inning. With one out, Mckenzie Champagne reached base on error and eventually scored on a single by Claire Sisco.

Heflin had two of Nicholls’ five hits in the game.

Nicholls starter Averi Paden (3-2) suffered the loss. She allowed four runs on four hits and one walk, while striking out one in four innings.

M. Kliethermes (8-2) picked up the win. She allowed an unearned run on five hits and two walks, while striking out 10.