CASTLETON, Vt. (3/22/2025) – The Nichols College men's lacrosse team picked up a much-needed win in their non-conference finale Saturday, soundly defeating VTSU-Castleton, 13-3 at Dave Wolk Stadium.

The Bison snap a three-game skid, and improve to 2-7 overall on the season. The Spartans fall to 1-6 with the loss.

The Bison had seven players find the back of the net in the win, including a pair of hat trick performances from Jonah Libby and CJ Cadigan, which led all players. Dylan DeRubeis and Kane Williams each scored twice, with DeRubeis additionally contributing three ground balls and one caused turnover, while Aydan Lockard, Jackson Hernandez and Conor Doherty rounded out the list with individual goals. For Lockard, his lone strike came as the first of his collegiate career.

Goalkeeper Brady Morgan (2-7) backstopped the win, making eight saves through 55 minutes of action. Travis Arnold went a perfect 20-for-20 at the faceoff, scooping 16 ground balls. Additionally, with his three caused turnovers against the Spartans, Cooper Melvin eclipsed 100 caused turnovers in his collegiate career. 

The game got off to a quiet start, with neither side scoring a goal in the first half. However, the scoreless tie didn't last through the second quarter, as the Bison tacked on five unanswered goals to lead 5-0 at the half. DeRubeis accounted for the first two at the 9:53 and 9:05 marks of the quarter, both off passes from Caserta, while Cadigan fired home the next two less than a minute apart to make it a 4-0 game with 5:00 to go. Libby closed out the half with his first of the game at 1:27, unassisted.

The Bison maintained their five-goal advantage in the third, with both teams scoring twice. For Nichols, both of their goals came in succession, with Libby scoring a man-up at 4:01 before adding his third and final goal shortly thereafter to make it a 7-1 game. Castleton would add one more goal in the final minute of the frame, but face a 7-2 deficit entering the final quarter.

Nichols padded their lead with a big fourth quarter, pouring in six more goals from six different scorers to earn the 13-3 win.

Men's lacrosse hosts Wentworth Institute of Technology (7-2) for their first Conference of New England test of the season, with opening faceoff set for 7:00 PM at Vendetti Field on Wednesday, March 26^th.