QUINCY, Mass. – The Nichols College softball team saw its season come to an end with a 5-4 loss in 10 innings to Eastern Nazarene College in a Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) play-in game Saturday afternoon at Mitchell-McCoy Field.
 
Nichols pushed across an unearned run in the first to grab the early lead, but the Lions threw up a crooked number in their half of the frame to move in front, 3-1. Freshman Viviana Coix (Warrenville, Ill.) doubled in the first run before a two-run single off the bat of classmate Payton Fry (Chandler, Ariz.) plated two more.
 
The Bison scored single runs in the third, fifth, and sixth innings to take a 4-3 lead. The team's second unearned run on the day in the third was followed by an RBI single from sophomore Kasey Ayer (Niantic, Conn.) two innings later. Classmate Kendall Meehan (Danvers, Mass.) knotted the score at three with an RBI single that scored classmate Courtney Manarky (Amston, Conn.) in the sixth.
 
Eastern Nazarene scored an unearned run in the sixth to tie the game on a double by sophomore Heidi Gomez (Floral Park, N.Y.). In the 10th inning, freshman Lauren Clements (Garrison, Texas) ended the game with a three-run home run.
 
Senior Haley Fountain (Warren, Mass.) took the loss in her final collegiate game, going nine-plus innings and allowing 10 hits and seven runs (six earned). She walked two and struck out four.
 
Freshman Lauren Weidler (Lansdale, Pa.) came on in the sixth and allowed just one hit over the final 4.1 innings to earn the win. She did not walk a batter and struck out four.
 
Meehan and Fountain each finished with two hits.
 
All-Time Series
Today's game marked the 49th all-time meeting between Eastern Nazarene College and Nichols College. The Lions have won two of the last three but trail the all-time series, 36-10-1.
 
Next Games
Nichols (14-21) – Season complete
Eastern Nazarene (16-23) – Monday, May 2 vs Salve Regina @ Endicott (Beverly, Mass.), TBA