All-Time Series & Streaks
The win marks the third in a row in the series for the Bison and they improve to 4-1 in the all-time series with the Mustangs.

Three Stars of the Game
1 – Freshman Kirsten Sullivan (Arlington, Mass.) (Nichols) – three goals; two assists; team-high six shots; one ground ball; one draw control
2 – Freshman Alyssa Kelly (Lee, Mass.) (Mount Ida) – four goals; two assists; game-high 16 shots; three ground balls; five draw controls
3 – Sophomore Lindsay O'Connell (Danvers, Mass.) (Nichols) – four goals; one assist; five shots; one ground ball; three caused turnovers

Quick Synopsis
The Nichols College women's lacrosse team opened its 2016 season with a 19-11 win over Mount Ida in non-conference action at Vendetti Field. The Bison jumped out to a 3-0 lead after the first six minutes of action and led the Mustangs 12-6 after the first half.

Key Stat of the Game
The Bison took seven more free-position shots than the Mustangs – scoring on six of their 11 chances. The Mustangs finished 2-for-4 on free-position shots.

Turning Point
At 22:39 of the first half the Mustangs cut the deficit to 3-2 after an unassisted goal from Kelly – just 17 seconds later, senior captain Alexa Smith (Salem, N.H.) found fellow senior captain Meghan Dombkowski (Sagaponack, N.Y.) cutting through the defense. Dombrowski caught the pass and fired a shot to double the Bison's lead to 4-2. Nichols went on to score eight of the next 12 goals to end the first half with a 12-6 lead.

Quick Hits
- The Bison opened up the season for the third consecutive season with a victory and second year in a row under head coach Kathryn Beall. The 19 goals mark the most by the Bison since April 9th of last season when the Bison won 20-11 over Mount Ida.
- O'Connell has notched four goals and one assist in the first game of the year in each of her first two seasons at Nichols.
- Nichols saw 10 different student-athletes score their 19 goals while only three Mustangs made up their 11 goals. The Bison outshot Mount Ida 28-26 for the game while also winning the draw control battle, 20-12.
- Junior captain Olivia Morawski (Fairfield, Conn.) scored a career-high four goals in the game while O'Connell also tallied four goals. The Bison also saw three goals from Sullivan, two from junior Brooke Marion (South Hadley, Mass.) and goals from Smith, Dombkowski, sophomores Katherine MacNutt (New Milford, Conn.), Melissa LaFleur (Chicopee, Mass.), and Allison Bench (Windham, N.H.), as well as freshman McKayla Pratte (Newington, Conn.).
- Junior Nicole Pavao (Peabody, Mass.) matched Kelly with four goals to lead the Mustangs while sophomore Emily McConnell (Dracut, Mass.) notched three markers.
- Junior Katherine Cotton (Kennebunk, Maine) made 11 saves in 47:09 of playing time while allowing nine goals to earn the win. Sophomore Jacqueline Hogue (North Grafton, Mass.) stopped four shots in the final 12:51.
- Freshman Jackie Tarsook (Derry, N.H.) made nine saves and took the loss for the Mustangs.

Quotes
"Today was great because it was a team effort. I think we need to work on transitioning a little bit but I think today overall went very well. It is great to start the season off with a win." – Nichols College head coach Kathryn Beall

Next up
Nichols (1-0) – Tuesday, March 8 vs Fitchburg State, 4:00 p.m.
Mount Ida (0-1) – Tuesday, March 8 at Becker, 4:00 p.m.