BEVERLY, Mass. – The Nichols softball team opened Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) by splitting a doubleheader with Endicott, the CCC's reigning champion and preseason favorite, on Sunday afternoon at the Endicott Softball Complex. With the results, the Bison now sit at 6-9-1 (1-1 CCC) on the season, while the Gulls are now 8-4 (1-1 CCC).
 
The Bison are right back at it on Monday, April 3 when they take on CCC foe Curry in a doubleheader at the Nichols Softball Field. The first pitch of game one is slated for 3:00 p.m.
 
Nichols 2, Endicott 1
 
The first game of the day was a pitcher's duel between Nichols' Olivia Pedro and Endicott's Maria Hanchuk. The Bison were limited to just one hit through the first five innings, but Pedro kept Gulls offense in check as the game remained scoreless.
 
The Bison offense woke up in the top of the sixth, as senior Allie Brown got things going with a leadoff walk. Emily Iannuccilli bunted Brown over to second before a flyout brought up Allie Silliman with two outs in the inning. The freshman came up clutch, ripping a double down the right field line to score Brown for the first run of the game. Freshman Ava Slavinsky followed up the double with a base knock of her own, scoring Silliman to extend the Bison lead to two.
 
Endicott got a run back in the bottom of the sixth on a wild pitch, but Pedro got two groundouts to end the inning. The Gulls were set down in order in the bottom of the seventh to give Nichols their first win against Endicott in the last 11 matchups.
 
 Pedro earned her fourth win of the season with a complete game effort, punching out four batters along the way. Silliman, Slavinsky, Mackenzie Jackson, and Mallory Gilmore all notched hits for the Bison.
 
Endicott 5, Nichols 1
 
Nichols jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the second inning on an RBI single by Iannuccilli, scoring Emma West-Testo. Starting pitcher Laney Martin kept the Endicott offense quiet through the first three innings, but the Gulls pushed across two runs in the bottom of the fourth on two hits and an error.
 
Endicott extended their lead in the bottom of the fifth, scoring three runs on a walk, a hit by pitch, and two hits to make it a 5-1 ballgame. The Bison were retired quietly in the final two innings as Endicott took game two by the score of 5-1.
 
Brown, Bailey Littlefield, and Slavinsky all picked up two hits for the Bison. Martin tossed four innings on the bump, allowing two earned runs on four hits while striking out two.