Box Score DUDLEY, Mass. (Sept. 19) – Senior Sara Bailey (Athol, Mass.) scored with nine seconds remaining in regulation to lift the Nichols College field hockey team to a 2-1 The Commonwealth Coast Conference victory over visiting Endicott College Saturday afternoon on Vendetti Field. The Bison, off to their best start since 1989, improve to 7-0 on the season and 2-0 in TCCC games, while Endicott evens its season at 3-3 overall and 1-1 in conference play. Bailey also assisted on the Bison's first goal of the game.
The Bison led for most of the game before the Gulls knotted it up with just 1:51 remaining. After the teams traded the ball several times around midfield, the Bison traveled in to Gulls territory where junior Eileen Clinton (Londonderry, N.H.) swept the ball across the netfront to Bailey, who knocked it in for her third goal of the season.
Clinton scored the Bison's first goal of the game in the 24th minute as she and Bailey flew down the field on an undefended break. Clinton carried the ball down the left and passed across a defender to Bailey on the right, who then drew out Gulls' goalkeeper, Taylor Teixeira before passing back to Clinton, who dumped the ball into the open net.
Play hovered around midfield for most of the game, as the teams combined for only 10 shots on net in the affair. Nichols finished with seven, while Endicott managed three, capitalizing on its only shot on goal in the second half with a late tally from Joanne Reid who knocked in a loose ball in front of the net in the 69th minute.
The Gulls had an excellent opportunity eight minutes earlier when Lauren Atkinson fired from just inside the arc, but the ball tipped off a Nichols defender and up over the cage.
With just under five minutes left and a 1-0 lead still intact, the Bison looked to increase their advantage with four consecutive penalty corners, but were unable to get a shot off in the series. Nichols finished with an 8-5 lead in corners.
Bison rookie goalkeeper Krista-Jean Forand (Plymouth, Mass.) earned her second shutout and seventh win of the season with two saves, while Teixeira shouldered the loss with five stops.
Nichols hosts MIT Tuesday night at 7 p.m. for a battle of the unbeatens; MIT stands at 7-0 on the year. Endicott travels to Salem State Wednesday for a 3 p.m. non-conference game.
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