McNeese State will try to win its third consecutive Southland Conference softball title without its best pitcher.

Senior right-hander Ashley Vallejo will miss the rest of the season after knee surgery earlier in the week. Vallejo, the 2022 SLC Pitcher of the Year, made one start this season going five innings and allowing three runs while getting the victory.

“Ashley decided to go ahead and have surgery and get her leg fixed,” said McNeese head coach James Landreneau. “She expects to be back next year.”

In her career, Vallejo is 45-24 with a 2.44 earned run average. She is not the only Cowgirl out of the lineup, Landreneau said.

Senior catcher Emily Phillips, who was off to a fast start, is out six weeks with a broken foot. Phillips has missed seven games and is hitting .314 with a pair of home runs and nine runs batted in.

“Injuries have hurt us but it’s good to get them now when we have time to adjust,” Landreneau said.

All this coming as the Cowgirls prepare to open Southland play with a doubleheader at Nicholls State in Thibodaux. The three-game series begins at 11 a.m. today.

The Cowgirls (14-12) have lost eight of their last 10 after losing to rival Louisiana-Lafayette 2-1 on the road Wednesday night. It was the latest in a long line of games to start the year.

“It is good that we get a fresh start and hit the reset button,” Landreneau said.

McNeese has played the 13th toughest schedule of the season, according to the NCAA, with opponents posting a 357-203 record, good for a .638 win percentage. They have played four games against the Nos. 1 and 2 teams in the nation, Oklahoma and LSU.

The Cowgirls have lost three of those four games by two or fewer runs.

“That shows what we are capable of doing,” Landreneau said.

Nicholls comes into the series 15-12, 3-0 in league play. The Colonels are coming off a doubleheader loss at home to Mississippi State on Wednesday after opening their conference schedule with a sweep of Northwestern State last weekend.

The Colonels outscored the Demons 16-5 in the series.

Pitcher Audrey McNeill led Nicholls in that series. She had a 0.88 ERA over 16 innings against Northwestern State. The senior posted three wins with 13 strikeouts. That helped her earn SLC Pitcher of the Week honors.

McNeese will lean on senior starter Shaeyln Sanders, who has started strong. She is 6-6 with a 2.44 ERA and has faced some of the top teams in the land.

“Shaelyn has been very good for us against very good teams,” Landreneau said. “We will see what we are made of.”

The coach said the Cowgirls need to fix the little things to move forward.

“It is not a drastic overhaul,” he said. “We need to be better at key moments, especially on offense. We have to flip two runs and that will make a huge difference in all our games.”

Sophomore Corine Poncho leads the attack with nine homers and 16 RBIs.

The Cowgirls are looking to make their fourth consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament.