KISSIMMEE, Fla. (March 13) – The Nichols College softball team opened the 2010 season at the Rebel Spring Games Saturday, dropping close games to Kean University and Rutgers-Newark. The Bison rallied for three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning against Kean, but fell, 6-4. Against Rutgers-Newark, the Bison had a 6-2 lead in the top of the fourth, but the Scarlet Raiders edged closer and then scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh to win, 9-8.

In the morning game, Kean plated one in the first on a sacrifice fly, and then added four in the second, scoring three on a two-out triple from Alicia Banz. Down 6-1 headed into the bottom of the seventh, Nichols banged out five hits and scored three runs, but stranded two runners with the final 6-4 score.  

In the nightcap, Nichols scored two runs in the top of the first before Rutgers-Newark cut the score in half in the bottom of the second. The Bison scored three runs in the top of the third, including an RBI triple form third baseman Chelsea Correia (Seekonk, Mass.), but were answered back with another Raiders run in the bottom of the frame. Correia plated another run in the top of the fifth to give Nichols a 6-2 lead, but back-to-back two-run innings by Rutgers-Newark put the score at 7-6 Nichols by the end of the sixth.

Ashley Robidoux (Milford, Mass.) led off the top of the seventh with a double, her second of the game, and came around on an Amber Cottrell (Hoosick Falls, N.Y.) single, but that was all the Nichols would manage in the game.

Rutgers-Newark led off the seventh with an error and a hit batter, both of whom came around to score on the first of three consecutive singles. After a lineout, Ashley Angeli came across with the winning run on Amber Affholter's RBI single.  

Lindsay Hassett (Oxford, Mass.) struck out five and allowed 10 hits in the first game, while Kara Buckley (Nashua, N.H.) struck out three and allowed 13 hits in the afternoon matchup.

Nichols faces Utica and Skidmore on March 14^th.