LSU to host Nicholls today in baseball

Second-ranked LSU plays host to Nicholls at 6:30 p.m. today in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.
LSU swept a three-game series against Kansas last weekend, starting a season 3-0 for the seventh consecutive year. The Tigers remained No. 2 this week in the Baseball America rankings and No. 4 in the Collegiate Baseball poll.
Nicholls (2-1) won two of three games at home last weekend against Stony Brook to begin the 2015 season.
LSU coach Paul Mainieri said true freshman right-hander Doug Norman, a Fort Mill, South Carolina native, will start on the mound for the Tigers in his first collegiate appearance.
Norman was voted to the 2014 Louisville Slugger and Rawlings First-Team All-America squads as a pitcher at Ardrey Kell High School in Charlotte, North Carolina. He recorded a 9-1 mark and a 0.78 ERA in 2014 with 94 strikeouts in 63 innings.
Nicholls coach Seth Thibodeaux will counter with senior right-hander Ryan Deemes (1-0, 0.00 ERA), who earned a relief win against Stony Brook last weekend.
Deemes made 17 appearances with 12 starts last season, posting an ERA of 3.63 in 57 innings with 34 strikeouts and a 3-4 record. Deemes threw three scoreless innings against the Seawolves Saturday, fanning two batters and allowing three hits in the victory.
LSU has won 46 of its last 48 mid-week non-conference games, dating back to the 2011 season.
“Every game we play is very significant, so we place a great deal of emphasis on the mid-week games,” Mainieri said in a news release. “We’re very proud of the record we have in the mid-week games because they all count in building our NCAA Tournament resume. We’re looking forward to facing a very good Nicholls team that is coming off of a series victory last weekend.”
The Tigers batted .305 (29-for-95) in the Kansas series, averaging just under 10 hits per game. LSU senior first baseman/second baseman Conner Hale batted .385 (5-for-13) during the weekend to lead the Tigers against Kansas. Hale collected one double and five RBIs, and he scored one run to spark LSU’s offensive effort.
Catcher Kade Scivicque hit .429 (3-for-7) in two games last weekend with one homer and three RBIs. Scivicque’s three-run dinger in the second inning of Friday night’s game gave the Tigers a 3-0 lead, and LSU went on to post a 4-1 victory.
First baseman/designated hitter Chris Chinea hit .364 (4-for-11) during the weekend with two RBIs and three runs, and right fielder Mark Laird batted .333 (3-for-9) with one RBI, four runs and three stolen bases.
Redshirt freshman right-hander Jesse Stallings enjoyed a successful debut as the Tigers’ closer, posting saves Friday and Sunday. Stallings worked two innings in the Kansas series, allowing no runs on one hit with no walks and four strikeouts.
Sophomore reliever Collin Strall, a transfer from Tallahassee (Fla.) Community College, also was impressive in his LSU debut, making two appearances and recording four strikeouts in two innings with no hits, runs or walks.
As a staff, LSU allowed just 17 hits in three games and limited Kansas to a .170 cumulative batting average.
Through three games against a tough Seawolves squad, the Colonel pitching staff registered a 1.33 ERA, led by Justin Sinibaldi (1-0), who threw six scoreless innings with four strikeouts.
Nicholls is batting .253 with a slugging percentage of .421 through the first three games of the year while holding opponents to .208 at the plate.
After a rough season-opener at the plate, Nicholls has hit well during the subsequent two games. Alex Shermer leads the Colonels offensively, hitting .400 with two RBIs. Kyle Reese carries a .333 batting average with three RBIs, two runs scored, two doubles and a triple. Tanner Vandevere and Christian Correa each carry a .300 average at the plate and have combined for five RBIs, three runs, two doubles, a triple and a home run.
LSU leads the all-time series with Nicholls, 51-22, including a 5-3 win against the Colonels last March in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.
The Tigers have won 24 of the last 25 meetings with the Colonels. Nicholls’ only win in its last 25 games versus LSU was a 3-1 victory against the Tigers on April 15, 2009, in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.
Today’s game can be heard in Baton Rouge on WTGE-FM 100.7. Live audio and stats of the contest may be accessed at www.LSUsports.net.
The LSU-Nicholls game may viewed live online on SEC Network +, accessible at SECNetwork.com and the Watch ESPN app.