# 2023 Nicholls Colonels baseball team

The 2023 Nicholls Colonels baseball team represented Nicholls State University during the 2023 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Colonels played their home games at Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field and were led by second–year head coach Mike Silva. They are members of the Southland Conference.
The Colonels had an overall season record of 34–24 and a conference record of 15–9 winning the Southland Conference regular season championship. They participated in the 2023 Southland Conference baseball tournament as the first seeded team. The Colonels won the tournament championship with a 4-0 record defeating McNeese 3–2, Lamar 4–0, New Orleans 5–3 and New Orleans 6–3. Winning the Southland Conference autobid, the Colonels played in the 2023 NCAA Division I baseball tournament Tuscaloosa Regional. They lost to 16th ranked Alabama 3–4 in the first game. The Colonels' season ended with a loss to Boston College 6–14 in the second game.

## Previous season

The Colonels had an overall season record of 26–25 and a conference record of 12–12 finishing tied for fourth place in the Southland Conference. They participated in the 2022 Southland Conference baseball tournament as the fourth seeded team. After winning their first conference tournament game against Northwestern State, the Colonels' season ended after losing to first seed McNeese and eighth seed Incarnate Word.

## Preseason
### Southland Conference Coaches Poll

The Southland Conference Coaches Poll was released on February 3, 2023. Nicholls was picked to finish sixth in the Southland Conference with 59 votes.
Coaches poll :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | McNeese State | 118 (7) |
| 2 | Southeastern Louisiana | 115 (10) |
| 3 | Lamar | 88 |
| 4 | New Orleans | 87 |
| 5 | Northwestern State | 65 (1) |
| 6 | Nicholls | 59 |
| 7 | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | 55 |
| 8 | Houston Christian | 41 |
| 9 | Incarnate Word | 20 |

### Preseason All-Southland team

Four Nicholls Colonels players were named to the conference preseason first team.

#### First Team

* Edgar Alvarez (NICH, JR, 1st Base)
* Brad Burckel (MCNS, SR, 2nd Base)
* Josh Leslie (MCNS, SR, 3rd Base)
* Parker Coddou (NICH, JR, Shortstop)
* Bo Willis (NWST, JR, Catcher)
* Tre Jones (TAMUCC, JR, Designated Hitter)
* Payton Harden (MCNS, SR, Outfielder)
* Brendan Ryan (TAMUCC, SR, Outfielder)
* Xane Washington (NICH, R-SR, Outfielder)
* Zach Garcia (TAMUCC, SO, Starting Pitcher)
* Grant Rogers (MCNS, JR, Starting Pitcher)
* Tyler Theriot (NICH, SR, Starting Pitcher)
* Burrell Jones (MCNS, SR, Relief Pitcher)
* Alec Carr (UIW, SR, Utility)

#### Second Team

* Josh Blankenship (LU, SR, 1st Base)
* Daunte Stuart (NWST, JR, 2nd Base)
* Kasten Furr (NO, JR, 3rd Base)
* Tyler Bischke (NO, JR, Shortstop)
* Bryce Grizzaffi (SELA, SR, Catcher)
* Kade Hunter (MCNS, SR, Designated Hitter)
* Josh Caraway (TAMUCC, JR, Outfielder)
* Braden Duhon (MCNS, JR, Outfielder)
* Issac Williams (NO, JR, Outfielder)
* Cal Carver (NWST, SR, Starting Pitcher)
* Tyler LeBlanc (NO, JR, Starting Pitcher)
* Will Kinzeler (SELA, JR, Starting Pitcher)
* Dalton Aspholm (SELA, SR, Relief Pitcher)
* Tre’ Obregon III (MCNS, SR, Utility)

## Schedule and results

Legend :
| | Nicholls win |
| | Nicholls loss |
| | Postponement/Cancelation/Suspensions |
| Bold | Nicholls team member |
| * | Non-Conference game |
| † | Make-Up Game |
2023 Nicholls Colonels baseball game log :
Regular season (34–24) :
February (5–4) :
| Date | Opponent | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record |
| Feb. 17 | Lindenwood* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 4–0 | Theriot, Tyler (1-0) | Salazar,Preston (0-1) | | ESPN+ | 518 | 1–0 |
| Feb. 18 | Lindenwood* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 2–3 | Rakers,Easton (1-0) | Mancuso, Josh (0-1) | | | 402 | 1–1 |
| Feb. 19 | Lindenwood* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 8–3 | Mayers, Jacob (1-0) | Stice,Bennett (0-1) | | | 501 | 2–1 |
| Feb. 20 | Lindenwood* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 9–2 | Llinas, Alexander (1-0) | James,Matt (0-1) | Saltaformaggio, Nico (1) | | 492 | 3–1 |
| Feb. 22 | at South Alabama* | Eddie Stanky Field • Mobile, AL | 4–5 | Willingham, Zach (2-0) | Gearing, Chase (0-1) | Lawrence, Colson (1) | ESPN+ | 1,084 | 3–2 |
| Feb. 24 | at Louisiana Tech* | J. C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park • Ruston, LA | 1–11 | FINCHER, Jonathan (1-1) | Theriot, Tyler (1-1) | | | 2,030 | 3–3 |
| Feb. 25 | at Louisiana Tech* | J. C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park • Ruston, LA | 2–3 | HECTOR, Rawley (1-1) | Desandro, Devin (1-1) | | | 2,084 | 3–4 |
| Feb. 26 | at Louisiana Tech* | J. C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park • Ruston, LA | 8–0 | Mayers, Jacob (2-0) | SMITH, Reed (0-1) | | | 2,141 | 4–4 |
| Feb. 28 | Southeastern Baptist College* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 10–2 | Jordan, Harper (1-0) | Pascua, Bryce (0-1) | | | 231 | 5–4 |
March (11–8) :
| Date | Opponent | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | SLC Record |
| Mar. 1 | Southeastern Baptist College* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 20–0 (7 inn) | Mancuso, Josh (1-0) | Thompson, Matthew (0-1) | | | | 6–4 | |
| Mar. 3 | Memphis* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 2–3 | FOWLER, DALTON (1-1) | Theriot, Tyler (1-1) | KENDRICK, DALTON (3) | | 204 | 6–5 | |
| Mar. 4 | Memphis* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 9–8 | Rodriguez, Arturo (1-0) | ELLIS, LUKE (0-1) | | ESPN+ | 713 | 7–5 | |
| Mar. 5 | Memphis* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 9–2 | Mayers, Jacob (3-0) | GARNER, SETH (0-1) | Evans, Cade (1) | ESPN+ | 437 | 8–5 | |
| Mar. 7 | Penn* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 3–2 | Saltaformaggio, Nico (1-0) | Millikan, Noah (0-1) | Gearing, Chase (1) | ESPN+ | 264 | 9–5 | |
| Mar. 8 | Penn* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 4–5 | Cerwinski, John (1-0) | Rodriguez, Arturo (1-1) | Trop, Eli (1) | ESPN+ | 211 | 9–6 | |
| Mar. 10 | at Louisiana–Monroe* | Warhawk Field • Monroe, LA | 8–0 | Theriot, Tyler (2-2) | Barlow, Cam (1-2) | | | 850 | 10–6 | |
| Mar. 11 | at Louisiana–Monroe* | Warhawk Field • Monroe, LA | 7–3 | Desandro, Devin (1-1) | Cressend, Cole (1-3) | Evans, Cade (2) | | 1,100 | 11–6 | |
| Mar. 12 | at Louisiana–Monroe* | Warhawk Field • Monroe, LA | 0–5 | Menard, Chipper (2-1) | Mayers, Jacob (3-1) | | | 909 | 11–7 | |
| Mar. 14 | vs. Mississippi State* | MGM Park • Biloxi, MS | 4–12 | Tapper, Brock (1-0) | Hayes, Chat (0-1) | | | 5,684 | 11–8 | |
| Mar. 16 | at Nebraska* | Haymarket Park • Lincoln, NE | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled |
| Mar. 17 | at Nebraska* | Haymarket Park • Lincoln, NE | 1–2 | Olson, Emmett (3-1) | Theriot, Tyler (2-3) | | | | 11–9 | |
| Mar. 18 | at Nebraska* | Haymarket Park • Lincoln, NE | 1–17 | Kaminska, Jace (4-0) | Desandro, Devin (1-2) | | | 217 | 11–10 | |
| Mar. 19 | at Nebraska* | Haymarket Park • Lincoln, NE | 10–7 | Gearing, Chase (1-1) | Garza, Michael (1-2) | Evans, Cade (3) | | 153 | 12–10 | |
| Mar. 22 | Mississippi Valley State* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 10–5 | Quevedo, Michael (1-0) | VALENZUELA, ISAIAH (1-3) | | | 203 | 13–10 | |
| Mar. 24 | at McNeese | Joe Miller Ballpark • Lake Charles, LA | 3–8 | Rogers, Grant (6-0) | Theriot, Tyler (2-4) | | | 1,020 | 13–11 | 0–1 |
| Mar. 25 | at McNeese | Joe Miller Ballpark • Lake Charles, LA | 8–6 (12 inn) | Saltaformaggio, Nico (2-0) | Vega, Christian (2-1) | | | 1,320 | 14–11 | 1–1 |
| Mar. 26 | at McNeese | Joe Miller Ballpark • Lake Charles, LA | 8–5 | Mancuso, Josh (2-1) | Voss, Zach (1-3) | Saltaformaggio, Nico (2) | | 1,068 | 15–11 | 2–1 |
| Mar. 29 | South Alabama* | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 8–10 (10 inn.) | Wood, Grant (4-1) | Rodriguez, Arturo (1-2) | | ESPN+ | 313 | 15–12 | |
| Mar. 31 | at Lamar | Vincent–Beck Stadium • Beaumont, TX | 9–8 (19 inn) | Jordan, Harper (2-0) | Cole, Daniel (0-2) | | ESPN+ | 1,491 | 16–12 | 3–1 |
April (8–6) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | SLC Record |
| Apr. 1 | at Lamar | | Vincent–Beck Stadium • Beaumont, TX | 7–9 | Hesseltine, Hunter (1-1) | Desandro, Devin (1-3) | Tauzin, Kole (1) | ESPN+ | 1,362 | 16–13 | 3–2 |
| Apr. 2 | at Lamar | | Vincent–Beck Stadium • Beaumont, TX | 4–2 | Mayers, Jacob (4-1) | Rivera, Jeremy (1-1) | Evans, Cade (4) | ESPN+ | 1,258 | 17–13 | 4–2 |
| Apr. 4 | at LSU* | 1 | Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field • Baton Rouge, LA | 2–12 (7 inn) | Evans, Cade (4) | Poirrier, Cole (0-1) | | SECN+ | 10,544 | 17–14 | |
| Apr. 6 | Incarnate Word | | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 8–9 | Rodriguez, Luis (1-2) | Evans, Cade (0-1) | Hayward, Steve (3) | ESPN+ | 165 | 17–15 | 4–3 |
| Apr. 6 | Incarnate Word | | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 8–1 | Quevedo, Michael (2-0) | Higdon, Seth (0-4) | | | 107 | 18–15 | 5–3 |
| Apr. 8 | Incarnate Word | | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 3–8 | Zavala, Isaiah (5-0) | Saltaformaggio, Nico (2-1) | Berens, Micah (1) | ESPN+ | 534 | 18–16 | 5–4 |
| Apr. 11 | Southern | | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled |
| Apr. 12 | at Southern | | Lee–Hines Field • Baton Rouge, LA | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled |
| Apr. 18 | Mississippi Valley State* | | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 12–3 | Desandro, Devin (2-3) | SNIPES, JAMES (0-4) | | ESPN+ | 311 | 19–16 | |
| Apr. 21 | Houston Christian | | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 16–7 | Galy, Gavin (1-0) | Wells, Jarek (0-3) | | ESPN+ | 721 | 20–16 | 6–4 |
| Apr. 22 | Houston Christian | | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 13–5 | Quevedo, Michael (3-0) | Zander, Walker (1-4) | Jordan, Harper (1) | ESPN+ | 501 | 21–16 | 7–4 |
| Apr. 23 | Houston Christian | | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 6– 5 | Mayers, Jacob (5-1) | Ripoll, Will (0-3) | | ESPN+ | 613 | 22–16 | 8–4 |
| Apr. 25 | at LSU* | 1 | Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field • Baton Rouge, LA | 6–5 | Saltaformaggio, Nico (3-1) | Bryce Collins (2-1) | Evans, Cade (5) | SECN+ | 10,204 | 23–16 | |
| Apr. 28 | at Northwestern State | | H. Alvin Brown–C. C. Stroud Field • Natchitoches, LA | 2–4 | Carver, Cal (5-2) | Desandro, Devin (2-4) | Froehlich, Kyle (5) | ESPN+ | 912 | 23–17 | 8–5 |
| Apr. 29 | at Northwestern State | | H. Alvin Brown–C. C. Stroud Field • Natchitoches, LA | 4–7 | Makarewich, Alex (5-3) | Quevedo, Michael (3-1) | Froehlich, Kyle (6) | ESPN+ | 878 | 23–18 | 8–6 |
| Apr. 30 | at Northwestern State | | H. Alvin Brown–C. C. Stroud Field • Natchitoches, LA | 9–5 | Mayers, Jacob (6-1) | Brown, Drayton (3-6) | | ESPN+ | | 24–18 | 9–6 |
May (6–4) :
| Date | Opponent | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | SLC Record |
| May 5 | Southeastern Louisiana | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 13–7 | Saltaformaggio, Nico (4-1) | Aspholm, Dalton (0-3) | | ESPN+ | 847 | 25–18 | 10–6 |
| May 6 | Southeastern Louisiana | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 6–5 (11 inn) | Saltaformaggio, Nico (5-1) | Lauve, Lance (2-3) | | ESPN+ | 554 | 26–18 | 11–6 |
| May 7 | Southeastern Louisiana | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 9–0 | Mayers, Jacob (7-1) | Stuprich, Brennan (3-5) | | ESPN+ | 554 | 27–18 | 12–6 |
| May 9 | McNeese | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 3–7 | Barthelemy, Brock (3-0) | Evans, Cade (0-2) | | ESPN+ | 207 | 27–19 | |
| May 12 | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 4–9 | Watson, Matthew (6-3) | Rodriguez, Arturo (1-3) | Thomas, Hayden (2) | ESPN+ | 501 | 27–20 | 12–7 |
| May 13 | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 7–2 | Mayers, Jacob (8-1) | Purcell, Colin (4-6) | Saltaformaggio, Nico (3) | ESPN+ | 531 | 28–20 | 13–7 |
| May 14 | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field • Thibodaux, LA | 9–6 | Gearing, Chase (2-1) | Garcia, Zach (2-4) | Evans, Cade (6) | ESPN+ | 545 | 29–20 | 14–7 |
| May 18 | at New Orleans | Maestri Field at Privateer Park • New Orleans, LA | 6–7 | Mitchell, Brandon (10-3) | Desandro, Devin (2-5) | Mead, Jacob (4) | ESPN+ | 1,102 | 29–21 | 14–8 |
| May 19 | at New Orleans | Maestri Field at Privateer Park • New Orleans, LA | 10–4 | Gearing, Chase (3-1) | Seroski, Caleb (3-1) | | ESPN+ | 1,005 | 30–21 | 15–8 |
| May 20 | at New Orleans | Maestri Field at Privateer Park • New Orleans, LA | 4–14 (8 inn) | Williams, Jack (3-0) | Quevedo, Michael (3-2) | | ESPN+ | 1,279 | 30–22 | 15–9 |
Post-season (4–2) :
Southland Tournament (4–0) :
| Date | Opponent | (Seed)/Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | Tournament record |
| May 24 | vs. (6) McNeese | (1) | Joe Miller Ballpark • Lake Charles, LA | 3–2 (14 inn) | Galy, Gavin (2-0) | Cherry, Derrick (3-3) | | ESPN+ | 757 | 31–22 | 1–0 |
| May 25 | vs. (3) Lamar | (1) | Joe Miller Ballpark • Lake Charles, LA | 4–0 | Mayers, Jacob (9-1) | Hesseltine, Hunter (4-2) | | ESPN+ | | 32–22 | 2–0 |
| May 26 | vs. (4) New Orleans | (1) | Joe Miller Ballpark • Lake Charles, LA | 5–3 | Theriot, Tyler (3-4) | Williams, Jack (3-1) | Galy, Gavin (1) | ESPN+ | | 33–22 | 3–0 |
| May 27 | vs. (4) New Orleans | (1) | Joe Miller Ballpark • Lake Charles, LA | 6–3 | Quevedo, Michael (4-2) | Mead, Jacob (1-1) | Evans, Cade (7) | ESPN+ | 443 | 34–22 | 4–0 |
NCAA Division I Tournament (0–2) :
| Date | Opponent | (Seed)/Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | Tournament record |
| Jun 2 | vs. (1)/16 Alabama | (4) | Sewell–Thomas Stadium • Tuscaloosa, AL | 3–4 | Alton Davis II (1-2) | Saltaformaggio, Nico (5-2) | | ESPN+ | 5,800 | 34–23 | 0–1 |
| Jun 3 | vs. (2) Boston College | (4) | Sewell–Thomas Stadium • Tuscaloosa, AL | 6–14 | Henry Leake(5-5) | Gearing, Chase(3-2) | A.J. Colarusso (1) | ESPN+ | 4.628 | 34–24 | 0–2 |