DUDLEY, Mass. (11/2/24) – The Nichols College women's volleyball team gave in-conference opponent Wentworth Institute of Technology all they could handle on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Leopards in a four-set () thriller at the Nichols Athletic Center.

The Bison, now 5-18 (1-6 CNE) overall, end a five-game skid as well as pick up their first conference victory of the season. The Leopards fall to 15-10 (5-2 CNE) overall with the loss.

Junior Kya Burdier picked up her second career triple-double in the win, compiling an impressive stat line of 11 kills on .245 hitting, 20 assists and 11 digs. Sophomore Melina Bezati also contributed offensively with a career-high 12 kills and a pair of service aces, while senior Luna Colozzo bolstered the defense with a match-high 30 digs, tying Nichols' best mark this season.

In the first set, the Bison took a 9-4 lead but sided out on a Wentworth kill. Nichols didn't trail from that point forward, as their lead grew to as many as eight points at 21-13 on a Bezati kill. As the defense held the Leopards to just one more point the rest of the way, Nichols finished off the set with a quick 4-0 run, highlighted by back-to-back Cassie Durocher service aces.

In the second set, Wentworth controlled the offensive side of the ball, evening the odds at 1-1 with a 25-15 win. However, the next set proved to be an outright dogfight between the two teams, with the largest lead belonging to the Bison at 14-11 midway through. As set the set progressed, the Leopards worked to close the scoring gap, but were still unable to flip the lead back in their favor as Nichols remained one step ahead. Before long, a Bezati kill brought the action to set point for Nichols, right before a Colozzo kill capped it off to put the Bison up 2-1 in the match.

In the fourth, the Bison overcame an early 7-1 deficit to tie the score at 18-all. Nichols then claimed its first lead of the set late in the action on a Bezati kill, before another added some insurance to make it a 22-20 set for the Bison. Following another Leopard point, kills from Burdier and Haylee Granato brought the score to match point at 24-21, before a Wentworth service error sealed the deal for the Bison, 25-22.

With two matches remaining, the Bison close out their road schedule with a trip to Roger Williams University (15-10, 5-2 CNE) on Wednesday, November 6^th. Opening serve against the Hawks is set for 7:00 PM inside the Campus Rec Center Gymnasium.