NASHUA, N.H. (2/19/2025) – The Nichols College men's volleyball team made quick work of non-conference opponent Rivier University on Wednesday night, defeating the Raiders in straight sets, 3-0 () inside Muldoon Gymnasium.

The Bison now have wins in consecutive matches for the first time this season, and improve to 5-9 (1-0 NEVC) overall. Rivier, following the loss, falls to 4-7 (1-3 GNAC).

Jack Normandin guided the offense with nine kills in the win, along with hitting .263 and a pair of blocks. Tanner Soracco and Dylan Knapp each contributed seven kills apiece, while Evan Sachs delivered 29 assists. Sachio Kekati and Cade Bernardi bolstered the defense with six digs each.

A 6-0 run bookended by a Soracco kill and Connor McCabe service ace put Nichols up 9-2 early in the first set. From there, the Bison continued to score points in bunches, gradually increasing their lead to as many as 12 points at 18-6. Rivier eventually discovered their offensive groove, but found the difference to be too much to overcome, with Nichols winning the set on a Normandin kill, followed by a Raider error.  

Nichols held a close 10-8 lead in the second set before using an 8-1 run to double-up on the Raiders, 18-9, with Rivier committing six more errors in that span. Soon after, a Soracco service ace extended Nichols' lead to 12 points for the second time on the night at 23-11, before Rivier answered back with a 5-1 run to narrow the gap to 24-16. The host run would abruptly come to an end, however, as a bad set by the Raiders awarded Nichols with the winning point, and a 2-0 match lead.

Facing the sweep, Rivier put up a solid fight in the third set and held a 17-15 lead past the midway point. However, the Bison rallied with a 6-1 run to flip the lead in their favor, 21-18, forcing the Raiders to play from behind the rest of the way. For the rest of the set the teams traded points, but Eastern was able to hold off the host Raiders to win the set 25-23, capped off by a final kill by Dylan Knapp.  

The Bison will face a handful of ranked opponents this upcoming weekend at the Juniata Eagles Invite Tournament, hosted by No. 6 Juniata College (13-2, 1-0 CVC). Nichols will open with a 5:00 matchup against the host Eagles on Friday, February 21^st, before closing with a 10:00 AM match against Penn State Altoona (7-6) and a 1:00 PM tilt against No. 13 St. John Fisher University (12-1, 1-0 UVC).