DUDLEY, Mass. (11/9/24) – It was points aplenty for the Nichols College women's basketball team on Saturday, as they came from behind in the second half to defeat Lasell University in their 2024-25 season opener at the Nichols Athletic Center.

Nichols opens the season at 1-0 overall with the non-conference triumph.

Returning guard Abrianna Vazquez led the Bison with 32 points on 9-of-23 shooting, while also collecting three rebounds and three steals through a team-high 30 minutes on the floor. Juniors Alyvia Smith and Adriana Romano each tossed in 16 points apiece, with Romano also logging a game-high eight steals, while graduate Summer Klein scored 15 points with eight boards. As a team, the Bison shot 29-of-88 (33.0%) from the field, scoring 43 points off of 53 Lasell turnovers.

Romano opened the game with an and-one layup for the Bison, spearheading what would be a dominant 8-0 run through the first two minutes of play. However, Lasell countered with some success from behind the arc, eventually tying the score at 13-13 before claiming their first lead, 17-16 on a made layup at 1:57 of the quarter. A final Vazquez layup in the waning seconds helped Nichols to an 18-17 lead after one.

The Lasers continued to land shots from three-point range in the second quarter, as they outscored the Bison 10-2 to force a Nichols timeout early. However, the scoring didn't stop out of the pause, with Lasell increasing its lead to as many as 12 by the midway point. Both teams would trade points the rest of the quarter, with Lasell maintaining a 10-point, 44-34 lead at the half.

The third quarter was an absolute shootout between the Bison and the Lasers, as the two teams combined for 68 total points. Nevertheless, the quarter was a turning point for the hosts, as Nichols outscored Lasell 38-30, including 12 points out of the hands of Vazquez and 10 from Klein. Heading into the final quarter, the efforts of the two graduate student guards had helped the Bison close the gap to just two points, as they trailed the Lasers 74-72.

After going scoreless for the first minute and a half, Vazquez fired off three straight free throws to push Nichols back into the lead, 75-74. Following another stretch of back-and-forth play, the Bison officially distanced themselves on a late 8-2 run featuring a introductory triple from Smith. Nichols went on to finalize the effort with another pair of Vazquez free throws.

The Bison turn back around to host Anna Maria College (0-2) on Monday, November 18th at the Nichols Athletic Center, with tipoff scheduled for 5:30 PM.