CASTINE, Maine – The Nichols College women's lacrosse team was able to tie the game late, but Maine Maritime Academy scored a pair of goals in the final minute of regulation to sneak past the Bison, 15-13, on Tuesday afternoon in non-conference action in Castine, Maine.
 
The Bison drop to 4-8 overall, while the Mariners improve to 5-4 with the win. Nichols is right back in action tomorrow night when they host Western New England University at 7:00 p.m. at Vendetti Field.
 
Senior Lindsay O'Connell scored five goals and added nine draw controls to lead the Bison. Classmate Mellissa LaFleur added four goals of her own with four groundballs and eight draw controls, while sophomore Miranda Smith had two goals and an assist for three points on the day. Senior Rachel Birmingham also scored twice, while senior Allison Bench handed out three assists.
 
Sophomore Emily Eagan suffered the setback, allowing eight goals while making three saves in 26:55 of action. Sophomore Molly Steen played the final 33:05 and gave up seven goals while recording a pair of saves.
 
Maine Maritime had three players four score goals apiece led by four goals and an assist from sophomore Madison Savary. Sophomore Sydney Adams and senior Shelby O'Neil had four goals each, while sophomore Madison Berry found the back of the net twice. Junior Sierra James picked up her third win of the season while making 19 saves for the Mariners.
 
The Bison held a 39-25 advantage in shots in the game, while also grabbing 21 draw controls to just nine for the Mariners. Groundballs were even at 19 apiece, while Nichols committed 11 turnovers to 20 for the home team.
 
The two teams traded goals to start the game until back-to-back goals from O'Connell and LaFleur put the Bison in front 3-2 with 20:32 remaining in the first half. The Mariners answered with a 6-1 run, with Miranda Smith scoring the lone goal for the Bison, as Maine Maritime took an 8-4 lead with 5:47 to play. LaFleur and Smith would each score before the end of the half, but the Mariners took a 9-6 advantage into halftime.

Out of the break, Nichols went on a 3-1 run on tallies from O'Connell, Birmingham, and LaFleur to climb back to 10-9 with 19:10 to play in the second half. Maine Maritime scored the next two goals, and O'Connell answered with a tally to keep the Bison within striking distance at 12-10.
 
After the Mariners took a 13-10 lead, the Bison scored three-straight goals off the sticks of Birmingham and O'Connell, who scored twice, to knot the game at 13-13.
 
The two teams traded chances, but the Mariners took the lead with 45 seconds to play as Savary put the Mariners in front 14-13. Maine Maritime would add an insurance goal with five seconds to play to pull out the 15-13 win.
 
All-Time Series
This was the first meeting between the two programs.