HAMMOND, La. – Ryan Byers smashed a grand slam in the first inning Sunday and Southeastern Louisiana never looked back on its way to a 15-2, seven-inning win over rival Nicholls in Southland Conference action at Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field.
Southeastern (22-7, 11-1 Southland) won its 17th straight conference series, maintaining its two-game lead atop the Southland standings.
Nicholls (12-17, 3-9 Southland) took an early lead, scoring an unearned run in the first.
Second baseman Ethan Valdez led off the game with a single through the right side of the infield. He advanced to second base on Joey Morales' sacrifice bunt, moving on to third when the throw to first by Lion starting pitcher
Domenick Carlini (4-0) skipped down the line.
Valdez scored on a chopper to first base by designated hitter Kyle Knauth.
The Lions went right to work on tying the score in the bottom of the inning.
Colonel starting pitcher Mike Hanchar (0-4) walked center fielder
Jacob Seward to open the Southeastern half of the inning. With two outs, designated hitter
Daniel Midyett singled through the left side to put runners at first and second.
Right fielder
Webb Bobo popped a routine fly ball to deep short, but Morales lost the ball in the sun. Seward, running on contact, scored all the way from second to tie the game, 1-1. Hanchar then walked second baseman
Carson Crites to load the bases in front of Byers.
The junior from Ponchatoula, Louisiana, smacked the ball out of the park to right-center field for his second home run of the week.
Southeastern added a pair in the second on a two-run single by first baseman
Jameson Fisher, going up, 7-1.
Crites knocked his fourth homer of the season, a towering, two-run shot to left, to highlight a three-run fourth.
Bobo led off a five-run sixth with his fifth home run of the season, a solo shot to right.
The Colonels picked up their final run on a play at the plate in the seventh.
Carlini tossed a complete game, the first of his career, to earn the win. The senior left-hander from Nesbit, Mississippi, allowed one earned run on five hits. He walked three and fanned a pair.
Fisher (3-for-4) was one of six Lions to record a multi-hit game, joining Bobo (2-for-4), Byers (2-for-2), Crites (2-for-3), Roberson (2-for-4) and Seward (2-for-4).
A junior from Zachary, Louisiana, Fisher is now hitting .521 (49-for-94) with seven doubles, one triple, eight home runs and 38 RBIs this season. His slugging percentage is .872 and owns an on-base percentage of .626. The Colonels retired Fisher just twice in 14 plate appearances during the three-game series.
Southeastern travels to Tulane (19-8) for a 6:30 p.m. game Tuesday. The game will be televised by Cox Sports TV and will be available on ESPN3 outside of CST's viewing area. Southeastern defeated the then No. 27-ranked Green Wave, 13-4, March 2 in Hammond.
Southeastern 15, Nicholls 2 (Apr 03, 2016 at Hammond, La.)
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Nicholls.................. 100 000 1 - 2 5 0 (12-17, 3-9)
Southeastern........ 520 305 X - 15 15 1 (22-7, 11-1)
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Pitchers: Nicholls - Hanchar, Mike; Goff, Daniel (3); Petty, Robbie (4); Thiac, Zach (6) and Tucker, Alex. Southeastern - Carlini, Domenick and Roberson, Sam; Eades, Chris.
Win-Carlini, Domenick (4-0) Loss-Hanchar, Mike (0-4) T-2:21 A-1170
HR SLU - Bobo, Webb; Crites, Carson; Byers, Ryan.
Weather: 72 degrees, sunny, 8 mph WSW
Petty, R. faced 5 batters in the 6th.
