DUDLEY, Mass. (1/11/24) – The Nichols College women's basketball team hosted Suffolk University for another round of conference play on Saturday afternoon but came up short in their comeback bid against the Rams in a 74-69 loss at the Nichols Athletic Center.

Nichols drops to 9-4 (2-4 CNE) on the season, while the Rams improve to 7-6 (2-4 CNE) overall.

Abrianna Vazquez led the Bison with her third 20-plus point performance in her last four games, scoring 23 points on 9-of-14 shooting (64.3%) with 3-of-4 (75.0%) success from the perimeter. Alyvia Smith scored 12 points, marking her second-straight game in double figures, while Adriana Romano notched 10 with three steals. Nichols finished the night shooting 26-of-69 (37.7%) from the field.

The Bison and the Rams played a fairly close opening half, with neither side gaining a double-digit lead. Nichols saw a chance to take the lead entering the second quarter with the score tied at 19-19, when a Vazquez triple 31 seconds in spearheaded a 6-0 run for the hosts, putting them ahead 25-19. Suffolk then battled back to take the lead on a go-ahead layup with 5:00 to play, which was included in a dominant 11-0 run to flip the lead in their favor, 30-25. The Rams would go on to hold a 37-30 lead at halftime.

Out of the break, Summer Klein opened the second half scoring for the Bison with a quick jumper 18 seconds in, which introduced a five-minute stretch of neck-and-neck play between the two sides. However, the remainder of the frame favored Suffolk, as the Rams outscored the Bison 11-7 through the remaining time to claim a double-digit lead of 57-47 through three.

In the final period, the Bison eventually cut the lead to as few as two points thanks to a Romano layup at 1:42 but saw their comeback bid denied as the Rams finished the game scoring six of the final nine points, resulting in the 74-69 final.

Nichols will look to bounce back on Wednesday, January 15^th as they travel to Wentworth Institute of Technology (2-11, 0-6 CNE) for another Conference of New England showdown. Tip off is scheduled for 5:00 PM inside Tansey Gymnasium.