THIBODAUX, La. – Nicholls scratched across the go-ahead run in the fifth, then added an insurance run in the eighth to edge HBU, 4-2, in the Southland Conference series opener Friday night at Ray E. Didier Field. It marked the first-ever Southland game for the Huskies.
 
Senior shortstop CJ Jarvis went 3-for-4 with an RBI for the Huskies (8-6, 0-1 SLC). Senior rightfielder Jordan McCoy went 2-for-3 with a double, a walk and scored a run, while senior designated hitter Mike Chamberlain went 2-for-4 with an run.
 
Junior Taylor Wright (2-2) took the loss for HBU, allowing three runs on 10 hits and striking out four in seven innings.
 
Tyler Duplantis was 2-for-4 with a triple and two RBIs for the Colonels (9-9, 1-0). Leo Vargas doubled and scored twice, while Keith Cormier singled, walked and scored a pair of runs. David Zorn went 2-for-4 with an RBI.
 
Taylor Byrd (3-1) earned the win for Nicholls, allowing two runs on 10 hits and striking out six in seven innings. Marc Picciola earned his third save, but hit a batter and walked one in the ninth.
 
Nicholls took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second when Cormier led off with a single and scored on a single by Zorn. Wright got out of the inning when Christian Correa grounded into an around-the-horn double play.
 
HBU answered in the top of the third when Chamberlain led off with a bunt single, and McCoy doubled to put runners in scoring position with no outs. After junior second baseman Josh Martinez grounded to first, junior rightfielder Thomas Clay lifted a sacrifice fly to right and Jarvis delivered an RBI single to give the Huskies a 2-1 lead. Jones singled past second and senior first baseman Bradley Brown's infield single loaded the bases, but junior centerfielder Zach Nehrir's ground ball ended the threat.
 
Phillip Lyons led off the bottom of the inning with a single, but was retired at second on Vargas' ground ball to third. Vargas stole second, then Duplantis tied the game with a triple to leftcenter.
 
In the bottom of the fifth, Vargas doubled down the leftfield line and scored when Duplantis singled to third and scored on a throwing error. The Colonels tacked on an insurance run in the eighth on Justin Smith's pinch RBI double.
 
The series continues Saturday with a 6 p.m. first pitch, followed by the finale Sunday at 1 p.m.