Feb. 25, 2008

THIBODAUX, La. - The Colonels will start Southland Conference play on Tuesday as they travel to face off against the Lions at 5 p.m. followed by a doubleheader on Wednesday at 3 and 5 p.m.

The Colonels (5-7) hold a 50-18 all-time series advantage over the Lions. Southeastern La. (9-3) was preseason polled to finish seventh in the league while Nicholls was projected to finish fifth.

In last season's series, both teams each took a game as the third contest was called off due to poor field conditions. The Lions won the first game 8-5 in 2007 while the Colonels picked up a 4-1 victory in the second contest courtesy of a three-run walk off homerun by junior Danielle Clayton in the bottom of the seventh.

Nicholls enters the game after finishing 2-1 in the Wingate Inn Classic Tournament hosted by Mercer in Macon, Ga. this past weekend. The Colonels posted wins over Austin Peay and Western Kentucky in the classic.

Southeastern La. is coming off of a doubleheader at Louisiana Tech in which they split with the Bulldogs. The Lions won the first game 9-7 and lost the second contest 5-1 in Ruston, La.

For the Colonels, senior Kat Harrell leads the team with her .514 mark at the plate and her .585 on-base percentage. The League City, Tex. native's .514 batting average is currently second best in the conference. She is also second on the team with a .771 slugging percentage heading into the match up against the Lions. As a team, the Colonels are batting sixth best in the conference with a .256 conversion ratio at the plate.

The Lions enter the game as the league's best team at the plate with a .309 average. SELA's Heather Sherrill is currently third in the SLC with a .513 batting average and her teammate Katie Duhe follows her with a .486 mark. The Lions' Nicole Schoenberger enters the contest leading the league with an 0.68 ERA and a 2-0 mark in the circle.

First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. on Tuesday at North Oak Park on the campus of Southeastern La.

#####