NACOGDOCHES, Texas (Interstat) — In a stunning reversal of expectations, the Nicholls State Colonels unleashed an offensive barrage for the ages, routing the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks 24-3 in a non-conference baseball game Saturday at Jaycees Field.

The result defied a pregame projection from Interstat that favored Stephen F. Austin 7-5, though an ELO system gave Nicholls State a 65.8% win probability. Instead, the Colonels turned the game into a historic blowout, pounding out 25 hits and scoring in five of the first seven innings to even their season record at 19-19. Stephen F. Austin fell to 21-18.

The most important sequence of the game came in the top of the sixth inning, transforming a commanding lead into a full-scale rout. Leading 11-3, Nicholls State erupted for seven runs, highlighted by a towering grand slam from right fielder Greyson Shafer. The inning saw Carter Jenkins drive in a run with a double before Shafer cleared the bases with his deep right-field blast off reliever Peyton Terry, pushing the score to 18-3 and extinguishing any lingering hope for the Lumberjacks.

Jenkins, the Colonels’ third baseman, was the unequivocal star, delivering a career performance by going 4 for 5 with three doubles and nine RBIs. This outburst followed a recent stretch where he had just two hits in his previous 12 at-bats. His day included a three-run double in the third inning and a two-run double in the seventh, consistently fueling the offensive onslaught.

Nicholls State set the tone immediately, scoring two runs in the first inning off SFA starter Cole LeBlanc, who lasted just 1 1/3 innings. The Colonels added three in the second, four in the third, and two more in the fourth before the decisive sixth-inning explosion. Every starter in the Colonels’ lineup recorded at least one hit, with left fielder Casey Artigues going 4 for 5 with four RBIs and four runs scored, and center fielder Fisher Ingersoll adding three hits.

Stephen F. Austin’s offense, limited to seven hits, was silenced after a brief early spark. Center fielder Cermodrick Bland led off the bottom of the first with a solo home run off Nicholls starter Haden Luke, and Tom Cantua added an RBI double later in the inning for a 2-0 lead. The Lumberjacks would not score again until an RBI single by Cal Ibe in the sixth. Luke earned the win, pitching six innings and allowing three earned runs on seven hits with four strikeouts. Caleb Dyess pitched a perfect seventh inning in relief.

The Lumberjacks used six pitchers in an attempt to stem the tide, with Nathaniel Bergeron recording the final out in the seventh. The teams committed no errors, but Stephen F. Austin pitchers issued eight walks and hit a batter.

The victory gives Nicholls State momentum heading into the series finale on Sunday, having also won the series opener 9-4 on Friday. Stephen F. Austin will look to salvage the final game of the three-game set before hosting Texas-Arlington on Tuesday.