THIBODAUX, La. (Interstat) — Caston Thompson launched two home runs, including a go-ahead two-run shot in the seventh inning, to rally Nicholls State to a 6-5 victory over Tulane in a back-and-forth nonconference baseball game Tuesday evening at Ray E. Didier Field.

The Colonels, who trailed 5-0 after the top of the first inning, completed the comeback on Thompson’s second blast of the night, a two-run homer off Tulane reliever Sam Larson that turned a one-run deficit into a one-run lead. It was his fifth home run of the season.

Tulane’s Green Wave struck immediately against Nicholls State starter Shaydon Benson. Leadoff hitter Kaikea Harrison doubled and later scored on a two-run single by Jason Wachs. After a pitching change, the Green Wave loaded the bases but could not add on, grounding into an inning-ending double play.

The early offensive outburst seemed to set the tone, but Nicholls State began chipping away in the third. Jaxon Milam scored on a double steal, and Nico RijoBerger followed with an RBI single to cut the Tulane lead to 5-2.

Hudson Mattox led off the fourth inning with his first home run of the year for the Colonels, making it 5-3.

Tulane responded in the top of the fifth. Johnny Elliott singled and Bryson Ayala doubled ahead of Harrison, who crushed a three-run homer to right field, his second of the season, to extend the Green Wave lead back to five runs at 8-3.

The Colonels answered swiftly in the bottom half. Thompson led off with a solo home run, his fourth of the season, to make it 8-4. The bullpens then took over, with Nicholls State’s Cole Simoneaux and Dalton Hill combining for 3 1/3 scoreless innings of relief to keep the deficit manageable.

That set the stage for the decisive seventh. After a walk and a wild pitch, Thompson came to the plate with one out and a runner on second. He connected on Larson’s offering, driving it over the right field wall to give Nicholls State its first lead of the night at 6-5.

The Colonels’ relief corps sealed the win. Hill worked a scoreless eighth, and Joseph Bordelon navigated a tense ninth inning for the save. Bordelon entered with a runner on first, issued a walk, and saw both runners move into scoring position on a wild pitch and a stolen base. With the tying run at third and the go-ahead run at second, he struck out pinch-hitter Hugh Pinkney and Bryson Ayala looking before getting Harrison to fly out to center to end the game.

The comeback victory improved Nicholls State’s season record to 5-8, while Tulane fell to 8-5.

Peyton Lacy was credited with the win for Nicholls State after providing 4 1/3 innings of long relief, allowing three runs on the Harrison home run. Simoneaux was pivotal with 2 1/3 hitless innings. Larson took the loss for Tulane.

The most critical sequence of the game was Thompson’s second home run in the seventh inning. It capped the Colonels’ comeback from the early five-run hole and transformed the game from a potential Tulane road victory into a resilient home win, ultimately serving as the decisive swing in a contest defined by offensive responses.