LAKE CHARLES—Two of the Southland's top three softball teams with the two best offenses and pitching staffs will clash this weekend in Thibodaux for a three-game series. The showdown will begin with a single game at 6 p.m. Friday night and conclude with a doubleheader Saturday beginning at 12 p.m. Streaming will not be available but fans can follow the game via live stats or follow @McNeeseSoftball Twitter for updates. The live stats link can be found on mcneesesports.com.
McNeese (28-13, 14-1 SLC) enters the weekend in first place while Nicholls (26-13, 12-3 SLC) is tied for second place with Abilene Christian. The Colonels will look to remain undefeated at home as they enter the weekend with a 10-0 record.
The Cowgirls enter the weekend with an overall .293 batting average and .321 in conference games while Nicholls has a team overall .281 average and a .276 average in league action.
McNeese's pitching staff also has a league low 1.02 ERA in conference play while Nicholls has a .185 ERA in conference games.
Individually, the Cowgirls have the top three hitters in the conference with all three players hitting over .400 in conference games. Sophomore
Justyce McClain leads the SLC with a .489 average and 12 stolen bases. Juniors
Erika Piancastelli and
Hailey Drew are also batting over .400 in conference play. Piancastelli has a .459 average with 18 RBI and a league high 15 walks. Drew is batting .419 with 18 hits and 10 RBI and six stolen bases.
In the circle for the Cowgirls, freshman
Alexsandra Flores and senior
Rachel Smith are 1-2 in ERA. Flores leads the league with a 0.23 ERA in conference game, is 4-1 with two shutouts and 18 strikeouts in 31 innings. Smith is second with a 0.55 ERA and is a perfect 7-0 in conference games with two shutouts, 33 strikeouts in 38.1 innings.
Nicholls is led at the plate by sophomore shortstop Amanda Gianelloni who is hitting .415 in league play and 17 hits. Samantha Mracich has a team best 18 hits while Kasey Frederick leads the team with 12 RBI in 15 hits in league games.
In the circle, Jackie Johnson and Megan Landry have handled the pitching duties so far in conference games. Johnson is 8-1 on the season with a 1.30 ERA in 54 innings. She has also struck out 44. Landry is 4-2 with a 2.61 ERA with 43 strikeouts in 48.1 innings.
The Cowgirls will be playing their first games of the week after its game on Tuesday against LSU was cancelled. It will also be the Colonels' first games this week as their doubleheader at Alcorn State on Tuesday was postponed.
