FRANKLIN, Mass. (3/7/24) – A pair of program records fell as the Nichols College women's lacrosse team earned its fourth consecutive victory in dominant fashion over Dean College, 24-7 in non-conference action at the Longley Athletic Complex.

The Bison now hold a 4-0 overall record this season, while the Bulldogs drop to 1-1 overall.

It was another stellar performance from junior midfielder Hadley Houghton, who broke two program records for single-game draw controls (13) and career draw controls (197) in the win. Houghton also put up eight points with seven goals and one assist, alongside a pair of caused turnovers. Sophomores Caitlin Welch and Emma Patton each netted five goals apiece, while recent CCC Defensive Player of the Week McKenzie Muir collected a game-best six ground balls. It was also a good day for freshman midfielder Emily Newton, who scored her first collegiate goal. The Bison, in total, outshot the Bulldogs 32-20, and went a perfect 10-for-10 on clears. The Bison also set a team program record with five free-position goals on the day.

Dean recovered from an early 3-0 deficit with back-to-back goals to make it a 3-2 game, just before Houghton added her third goal of the period to put the Bison ahead 4-2. From there, the floodgates opened as Houghton added another pair at 8:37 and 8:01 respectively, which contributed to a stretch of seven unanswered goals by the Bison to make it a 10-2 game. The Bison closed out the quarter with a 13-3 lead in hand, with Patton also nailing down a hat trick in the frame.

The Bison dominance continued into the second quarter, as Paige Alexander slotted her fourth goal of the season at 12:10 to spearhead what would be a 5-0 quarter for the guests. Each of the goals belonged to separate players, leading to a commanding 18-3 Bison lead over the Bulldogs at halftime.
Nichols tacked on three more goals to open the second half, two of which came off shots by Welch, to create a 21-3 difference. At 5:10 of the third, Dean finally broke silence with their first strike since the opening quarter to make it 21-4, but the Bison answered back just a few minutes later with Welch's third goal of the period, sending Nichols into the fourth leading 22-4.

Newton added her first career goal at 10:52 of the fourth, while fellow first-year Gabriella Mandirola followed it up 2:17 later with her second of the season, rounding out the offense for the Bison. Dean finished the game with three unanswered goals, but to little avail as Nichols decisively took the win, 24-7.

Starting goalkeeper Briar Slattery improved to 3-0 on the season notching four saves on seven shots faced. Senior Keri Tremblay also made an appearance in goal, stopping four-of-eight.

Nichols returns home to Vendetti Field for another non-conference showdown against Simmons College (2-3) on Saturday, March 9^th at 1:00 PM.