MILTON, Mass. (10/21/23) – On Saturday afternoon, the Nichols College women's volleyball team picked up their first Commonwealth Coast Conference victory of the season over Curry College, winning in straight sets, 3-0 (25-18, 25-18, 25-18) at Katz Gymnasium.

The win goes down as the Bison's third in a row and improves their record to 14-7 (1-4 CCC) on the year. The Colonels fall to 4-18 (0-6 CCC) with their eighth straight loss.

Ryley Plourde led all Bison with 12 kills while hitting .857 in the match, additionally collecting a pair of solo blocks and three digs along the way. Haylee Granato matched Plourde's 12 kills on the floor, while Ruby St. Onge registered a new season-high 24 assists along with three kills, five digs and a two service aces.

To start out, both teams flipped back and forth in the opening frame that saw six ties and five lead changes. On two separate occasions, the Bison boosted themselves with different 5-0 runs to build up to a 23-15 edge, eventually sliding into set point position on a kill by sophomore setter Kya Burdier. Despite getting a little late help off consecutive Bison errors, the Colonels would surrender the first set to the guests by way of a service error, putting Nichols ahead 1-0 by a 25-18 score.

Energized by their first set triumph, The Bison opened up an early 6-2 lead after a attack error by the Colonels. As a result of falling behind early, the Colonels struggled to gain any offensive traction in an attempt to narrow the deficit, with 16 of the team's 18 points scored coming as a result of Bison miscues. Nichols would take the second set by the same score of 25-18, finishing on a 4-0 run that was capped off by a Granato kill.

Curry re-discovered some of their offensive rhythm in the third set, but later fell by the wayside when the Bison mounted a 5-0 run to claim a 22-17 lead, ultimately outscoring the Colonels 8-1 to win the set, again by a 25-18 final. Of those eight final points earned, four belonged to Ryley Plourde who wrapped things up with two consecutive kills.

The Bison continue down the home stretch of the 2023 season with another CCC matchup on the horizon, when they welcome Gordon College (12-9, 3-1 CCC) to the Nichols Athletic Center for a 7:00 start on Thursday, October 26^th.