DUDLEY, Mass. (5/6/2025) – Building off a historic regular season, the Nichols College softball team now turns its attention to the Conference of New England (CNE) postseason.
CNE Release and Bracket
The Bison finished with a stellar 12-6 record in CNE play, securing the No. 2 seed in the tournament and earning hosting rights for the opening rounds—an achievement the program hasn't seen in recent memory.
Nichols has also set a new single-season program record with 29 wins and counting, while suffering just 11 losses. Impressively, the Bison were never swept in a doubleheader this season.
Picked to finish sixth in the CNE preseason coaches' poll, the Bison have exceeded expectations under the leadership of head coach
Caitlin Hitchcock and assistant coaches
Sam Witmer,
Alyssa Mabardy, and
Colleen Kuplast-Bousquet.
On the Field
In the circle, senior captain
Chelsea Indyk has been dominant, compiling a program-best 20-5 record with a conference-leading 1.69 ERA—her career low—and logging 149.1 innings pitched, also tops in the CNE.
Indyk has shared duties with freshman
Molly Medor, a two-time CNE Rookie of the Week, and sophomore
Ally McNamee. Together, the trio boasts a combined 2.47 ERA, the lowest among conference teams.
Defensively, the Bison infield showed its maturity and consistency. Juniors
Ava Slavinsky and
Allie Silliman, along with seniors
Erin Gour and
Chloe Steiniger, anchored a unit that led the conference with 833 putouts. Silliman also became the program's all-time leader in career putouts, reaching 742 earlier this season.
Offensively, Nichols leads the CNE with a .310 team batting average and ranks second in total hits with 341. Slavinsky, the Bison's leadoff hitter, leads both Nichols and the conference with 58 hits.
Scouting the Opponents
As the No. 2 seed, Nichols awaits the winner of the opening-round matchup between No. 3
Western New England and No. 6
Wentworth, to be played at 1 p.m. Wednesday at Nichols Softball Field in Dudley. The Bison are scheduled to play the winner at approximately 3 p.m.
Wentworth is led at the plate by
Kyla Igawa,
Linnea Carlson, and
Lexi Lefkowski, all of whom are batting above .340. The Leopards have used six pitchers this season, with freshman
Julia Malowitz leading the staff. She has pitched over 90 innings, posting a 4.51 ERA and seven wins.
Their opponent,
Western New England, features offensive standouts
Riley Kane and
Marley Rodriguez, who have each tallied more than 30 hits. Kane also contributes in the circle alongside
Ava Blanchard, and together they've combined for a 2.32 ERA and 21 wins.
Nichols split its doubleheader with Western New England at home on March 31, dropping game one 7-3 before bouncing back with a 5-4 win in nine innings. Against Wentworth, the Bison earned a sweep on April 6 in Boston, winning 3-1 and 3-2.
