West Hartford, Conn. (10/21/23) – The Nichols Men's Soccer Team fell to the University of Hartford Hawks 4-2 on Saturday afternoon action in Connecticut. The match marked the first ever meeting between the two teams.
 
With the loss, Nichols falls to 7-5-3 (2-2-3 CCC) this season, and the University of Hartford has sits at 4-6-2 on the year. (As a reclassifying institution to Division III, Hartford contests in 2023 will not be recognized by the Conference as intra-conference contests. The record reflected above accounts for results earned by Hartford vs. CCC opponents only).
 
Hartford opened the scoring in the 11^th minute of the match, thanks to a goal from Nate Becher. Bencher would add a second goal in the 22^nd minute to extend the Hawks lead to two. Team captain Miron Jusufi scored for the Bison off a penalty kick goal in the 26^th minute to bring the lead back down to one.
 
Before the close of the first half, Hartford would add an additional goal to extend their lead again, off the foot of Alex Quinones. The Hawks would take the 3-1 to halftime.
 
In second half action, both sides would see a single goal added to their total. Nathan Salamon would score for the Bison in the 68^th minute of the assist of Brady Stevenson. The Bison would cut the lead to 3-2 and continue pressuring the home side. But with less than four minutes to play, Kellijah Morgan would add another goal for the Hawks, extinguishing the chances of a Bison comeback. The score would settle at a 4-2 tally.
 
In goal for the Bison, freshman Benji Carr saw his second start of the season, facing 14 shots in the loss. The Bison would outshoot the Hawks 19-14 on the day.
The Men's Soccer team is back in action as they round out their 2023 regular season this Tuesday. They will face off against CCC opponent Gordon on the road Tuesday October 24^th at the Brigham Complex. Kickoff is set for 7pm. Their focus will then shift to the CCC playoffs: opponent and time TBD.