DUDLEY, Mass. (4/10/24) – Sophomore outfielder Riley Chartier delivered a walk-off RBI double in the bottom of the seventh inning to guide the Nichols College softball team to a doubleheader split against Rhode Island College in non-conference play at the Nichols Softball Field Wednesday evening.

The Bison move to 10-10 (4-2 CCC) overall, while the Anchorwomen shift to 21-3 (4-0 LEC). The game two victory for Nichols also snapped a 19-game win streak for RIC.

Between the two games, junior infielder Chloe Steiniger was the offensive leader for the Bison, plating three RBI on two hits. Sophomore catcher Bailey Littlefield drove in two runs, while junior Erin Gour finished 3-for-7 (.429) at the plate with one steal.

Game #1 Nichols 1 Rhode Island College 3

A costly Nichols fielding error on the first play of the game put RIC in immediate scoring position, which ultimately led to the game's first run on an infield groundout. Two innings later, the Anchorwomen extended their lead to 2-0 by way of a solo home run to left-center field.

Play continued through scoreless fourth and fifth innings, before the Anchorwomen added their final run of the game in the top of the sixth.
Showing resilience, Nichols broke their silence with a single run in the home half of the seventh inning on an RBI double to the right-center field gap by Littlefield. Despite the late rally, RIC would shut down the remainder of the inning to claim the 3-1 win.

Sophomore Olivia Pedro (1-5) took the loss for Nichols after giving up three runs on six hits through a full seven innings, striking out three batters.

Game #2 Nichols 5 Rhode Island College 4

In game two, Nichols opened the scoring in the bottom of the first with two runs on a well-placed single up the middle by Steiniger with the bases loaded. With a baserunner still camped out at third, Littlefield followed it up with her own RBI single through the right side, improving the Bison lead to 3-0 in the first frame.

However, after a scoreless second inning for both sides, RIC would knot the game up at 3-3 in the top of the third on three separate scoring plays to center field. The teams would then play through another scoreless inning in the fourth, before the Bison reclaimed the lead in the fifth on an RBI single by Steiniger, making it a 4-3 ballgame.

The Anchorwomen continued to pester the Bison by responding with a solo homer in the top half of the seventh, tying the game a second time at 4-4. Despite this, the Bison went back to work in the bottom of the inning and were rewarded with a 5-4 walk-off win on Chartier's scoring double.

Junior Chelsea Indyk earned the start and tossed 6.1 innings against the Anchorwomen, allowing four runs on 10 hits and two walks, striking out eight. With her fifth strikeout of the game, Indyk reached her career milestone of 200 strikeouts, becoming the sixth player in program history to do so. Freshman Cassidy Machado (1-2) finished out the game for the Bison, picking up her first collegiate win in the process.  

Up next, the Bison will host Suffolk University (12-12, 3-1 CCC) for a weekend doubleheader on Saturday, April 13th. The softball program will also be celebrating Senior Day prior to the matchup, with game times set for Noon and 2:00 PM at the Nichols Softball Field.