Baseball | 9/25/2017 1:02:00 PM

DUDLEY, Mass. – Former Nichols College pitcher Joseph Nicolace (Cranston, R.I.) from the class of 2016 has signed a professional contract with the White Sands Pupfish of the Pecos League in Alamogordo, N.M.

"We are very excited for Joe and his family," said head baseball coach Nick Puccio. "Joe has had goals to play professional since we got here in 2014. I couldn't be happier for him to be able to achieve that goal, and I couldn't be prouder to call him an alum of our program."
 
Nicolace played as both an outfielder and pitcher for the Bison, appearing in 92 career games including 41 appearances as a pitcher with 17 career starts. He batted .273 with nine doubles, a homerun, 19 RBI and 17 walks at the dish. On the mound, he registered four wins and two saves over 114 innings of work with 112 strikeouts over his four seasons.
 
In his senior season, Nicolace went 4-2 in a career-high 56.1 innings pitched with 58 strikeouts. He led the team in punchouts and tied for the team-lead with four wins, while finishing third on the team in appearances (13), and second in innings pitched. He was named the Commonwealth Coast Conference Pitcher of the Week on April 4, 2016 after leading the Bison to a 3-1 win over Lesley University by tossing seven innings and scattering only four hits while allowing one earned run with eight strikeouts.
 
Nicolace's signing is the first professional contract for a player who played under Nick Puccio.
 
The Bison are coming off a 23-19 mark from a season ago, which included an appearance in the CCC Tournament.