No. 3 Lamar Earns 7-2 Victory Over No. 2 Nicholls
Southland Conference
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LAKE CHARLES, La. – No. 3 seed Lamar (34-20, 18-9 Southland) frustrated No. 2 seed Nicholls (38-16, 21-5 Southland) in a 7-2 win, Wednesday afternoon at the Cowgirl Diamond on the campus of McNeese in Lake Charles, La. The Cardinals notch their second win today and advance to the third round to take on the winner of tonight’s match between No. 1 McNeese and No. 5 Stephen F. Austin.
The Cardinals took an early 5-0 lead in the top of the first, sending 10 batter to the plate. Junior first baseman Ashley McDowell hit a single to bring in freshman second baseman Kelly Meeuwsen, and was later brought in by a wild pitch. Meeuwsen and senior outfielder Sarah Ragsdale followed with singles of their own to bring in three more runners.
A Colonels error and a walk in the top of the fifth allowed for a two-run double by Meeuwsen to increase the lead to seven.
The Colonel offense picked up in the sixth inning when a sacrifice fly and single by senior outfielder Danielle Phillips scored two.
Cardinals sophomore pitcher Laura Napoli pitched a complete game giving up two runs on 10 hits. She held the Colonels scoreless for five innings.
Lamar will now take on either top-seeded McNeese (39-12, 23-4 Southland) or fifth-seeded Stephen F. Austin (26-27, 13-13 Southland) in winners bracket semifinals tomorrow afternoon, first pitch is slated for 4 p.m. Back in April, the Cardinals lost their home series, 1-2, to McNeese. SFA and Lamar did not play each other in the 2016 regular season.
Nicholls will now play in tomorrow afternoon’s back draw game against No. 4 seed Central Arkansas. Game time is set for 1:30 p.m. The Colonels swept the Bears in Thibodaux, La. back in April.
Tournament play continues tonight in Lake Charles, La., with the Cowgirls taking on the Ladyjacks at approximately at 8:00 p.m.