THIBODAUX, La. – After splitting the first two of a 12-game road trip, Lamar University (14-28, 8-13 SLC) returns to Southland Conference action this weekend with the final spot in the postseason potentially on the line. The Cardinals will start a three-game series at Nicholls State University (17-25, 7-11 SLC) on Friday at 6 p.m. Big Red is 10th in the SLC standings, just behind Nicholls and New Orleans, both tied for eighth.
 
The Last Time Out – LSU and Southern
 
Lamar outhit the Tigers of Louisiana State University (25-17) through the first five and a half innings but a home run and a few errors allowed LSU to pull away late in a deceptive 8-0 shutout Tuesday. The Cards bounced back in a big way on Wednesday with a season-high in runs (14) and hits (21) in a 14-12, 10-innings win at Southern.
 
Cole Girouard hit .700 through the two mid-week games (7-of-10) with two doubles, four runs scored, and three RBIs. Ryan Erickson's scoreless April came to an end on a one-run single in the bottom of the eighth inning against Southern, and Jack Dallas improved to 3-3 on the year with a scoreless 10th.
 
Lamar vs. Nicholls
 
Series Record
All-Time Series: Lamar leads 59-38-2
At Lamar: Lamar leads 40-21-1
At Nicholls: Lamar leads 19-17-1
At Neutral Site: N/A
Coach Davis against Nicholls: 1-2
Coach Thibodeaux's against Lamar: 8-11
 
Scheduled Starters:
Friday: RHP Tanner Driskill (4-3, 3.40) vs. LHP Alex Ernestine (3-3, 5.49)
Saturday: LHP Noah Sills (3-4, 3.58) vs. RHP Cayden Hatcher (2-5, 4.65)
Sunday: LHP Jason Blanchard (0-4, 3.07) vs. RHP Jacob Bedevian (1-6, 6.00)

Seth Thibodeaux (not to be confused with the name of the city his team plays in, Thibodaux) is in his eighth season as the skipper of Nicholls. The Colonels are 218-213 overall and 112-117 in the Southland in that time, including a 17-25 overall and 7-11 SLC mark in 2018.
 
The Colonels possess one of the best infield defenses in the conference with 41 double plays in 2018; just six behind SLC leader Northwestern State. Offensively they rank in the lower half of the league, averaging 5.7 runs per game (ninth) on a .268 batting average (seventh). They have 375 hits this year (eighth) including 73 doubles (fourth), 12 triples (fourth), and 17 home runs (11th). Their pitching staff has a 4.93 ERA, 11th of 13 teams in the SLC, and they've shown a penchant for beaning batters with 61 on the year (third-most in the league).
 
Chet Niehaus has 28 walks this year, the third-most in the SLC, and an additional 15 free bases from hits-by-pitch. He's one of four starting Colonels with a batting average above .300 at .317. The Nicholls batters with hitting over .300 include Brady Bell (.338, 45 hits, 23 RBI, 20 runs), Joey Morales (.325, 51 hits, 20 RBI, 22 runs), and Ethan Valdez (.311, 50 hits, 19 RBI, 37 runs).
 
Christian Bahlinger leads the Southland Conference in pitching appearances this year with 26, 25 in relief and one start. Bahlinger possesses a 4.60 ERA through 45.0 innings pitched, striking out 33 with 10 walks. Saturday's starter for the Colonels is Cayden Hatcher, the team's strikeout leader (41).
 
News and Notes on Lamar
 
FRESHMEN FORCED INTO SIGNIFICANT ROLES
 
Freshmen have had to step up considerably for Lamar this season. After replacing 21 members of the 2017 squad, Big Red has started freshmen 108 times this year in the lineup and four times on the mound. In contrast their 2018 opponents have started freshmen just 30 times in the lineup and eight times on the mound.
 
CARDINAL BATS WARMING ALONG WITH THE TEMPERATURE
LU hit .190 in February, but when the calendar flipped to March the Cards swung at an improved .218 rate. April's batting average is .275 through 14 games.
 
Phil Ingram (.000 in February to .288 in March to .373 in April) has shown the most drastic improvement, collecting 22 hits in 59 at-bats with 11 runs scored and six RBIs. He's drawn 15 walks in that time and struck out eight times.
 
Logan LeJeune (.000 in February to .200 in March to .333 in April) and Cole Girouard (.000 in February to .373 in March to .306 in April) have also improved quite a bit since the season's start.