HAMMOND, La. – Southeastern Louisiana swept a doubleheader against in-state rival Nicholls, winning 7-6 in seven innings and 5-4 in the second game, Saturday in Southland Conference action at Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field.
 
The wins pushed the Lions (28-16, 20-11 SLC) back ahead of New Orleans (26-21, 21-14 SLC) into sole possession of first place in the conference standings. The Privateers now sit one game back, tied for second with Abilene Christian (27-17, 18-11 SLC).
 
The series concludes Sunday in Thibodaux, Louisiana with a 2 p.m. game at Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field. Nicholls plans to start sophomore Nick Heckman (1-5, 4.96) Sunday in Thibodaux. The Lions will go with freshman right-hander Will Kinzeler (4-2, 3.29).
 
Sunday's game can be heard in the Hammond area on the flagship station of the Southeastern Sports Radio Network – KSLU 90.9 FM – in addition to online at www.LionSports.net/ListenLive and via both the Lions Gameday Experience and TuneIn Radio apps.
 
Other options to follow the action include live statistics or the @LionUpBaseball Twitter account. Links to audio, video and stats are available on the baseball schedule page at www.LionSports.net.
 
GAME ONE – Southeastern 7, Nicholls 6 (7 innings)
Nicholls leadoff hitter Dane Simon jumped on the first pitch of the game and launched a solo home run to left-center field.
 
The Lions tied up the game in the bottom of the inning. Evan Keller led off with a double to left. After hitting Tyler Finke with a pitch, Colonel starting pitcher Trever Kilcrease retired the next two batters before walking Preston Faulkner to load the bases. Keller led the way as the Lions pulled off a triple steal, scoring the tying run.
 
The first four Colonel batters reached in the second, leading to a three-run rally.
 
Southeastern countered with five runs in the bottom of the inning. Rhett Rosevear reached on a one-out single before stealing second base. One out later, he scored on Evan Keller's two-run homer to left-center. The Lions tied it up one batter later as Tyler Finke blasted his fourth home run of the season, marking the first back-to-back homers for Southeastern since March 16 at LSU.
 
After Kilcrease issued back-to-back walks Christian Garcia and Jacob Burke, Preston Faulkner greeted reliever Tyler Theriot with a two-run double into the left-center field gap. All five runs were scored with two outs.
 
Three singles in the fourth produced a run, pulling the Colonels within one, 6-5.
 
An insurance run in the fifth proved to be the deciding factor when Nicholls scratched across one final run in the sixth after an error.
 
Kyle Flettrich (1-1) earned the win, logging 2.1 innings of relief and allowing one run. Trey Shaffer worked the final two innings to earn his second save of the season. Kilcrease (2-7) suffered the loss, allowing six runs in 1.2 innings pitched.
 
Faulkner (2-for-2), Finke (2-for-3) and Keller (2-for-4) picked up a pair of hits each.
 
GAME TWO – Southeastern 5, Nicholls 4
Freshman Brennan Stuprich (6-1) was the story of the game, allowing just one hit over 8.1 innings to earn the win.
 
He locked horns early with Nicholls starter Devin Desandro (3-3), also a freshman, as neither team picked up a base hit until the fourth inning.
 
The Colonels picked up an unearned run in the second and Southeastern tied it up in the fourth with one of their own. Keller drew a leadoff walk in the fourth, stealing second base. He advanced to third on Garcia's infield hit, scoring on a throwing error.
 
Nicholls picked up another unearned run in the fifth to regain the lead, but the Lions touched up Desandro for four runs in the bottom of the inning.
 
After recording the first out of the inning, Desandro hit Rosevear with a pitch. Bryce Grizaffi followed with a single to right. Eli Johnson drove both in with a double to left-center. After Keller drew a two-out walk, Finke doubled to center to drive in two more.
 
With the lead, Stuprich cruised. The right-hander from Kenner, Louisiana retired 11 consecutive batters before issuing a one-out walk in the ninth.
 
Stuprich allowed three runs, one earned, while walking four and striking out seven. Trey Shaffer closed it out, striking out two to end the game with the potential tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position. For the left-hander, it was his second save of the day and third of the week.
 
Desandro was the hard-luck loser, allowing five runs – four earned – in 4.2 innings.
 
Garcia (2-for-4) and Johnson (2-for-3) picked up a pair of hits each.
 
LIONS GAMEDAY EXPERIENCE APP
The Lions Gameday Experience app puts audio, stats, video, social media and more in the hands of fans. Those in attendance can also check in to earn reward points redeemable for Southeastern-related prizes. Available for both Android and iOS devices, it can be downloaded from the App Store and Google Play or by following the link www.LionSports.net/App.
 
DIAMOND CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the baseball program are encouraged to join the Diamond Club. Lion baseball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
 
All membership fees and donations to both the Diamond Club and S Club (baseball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern baseball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
  
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Lions Baseball, follow @LionUpBaseball or @MattRiser17 on Twitter, @LionUpBaseball on Instagram and Facebook, and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.