BRISTOL, R.I. (1/10/2026) – The Nichols College women's basketball team fell to Roger Williams University, 68–44, on Saturday afternoon inside the Student Recreation Center, despite a 20-point performance from Alyvia Smith.

The loss drops Nichols' record to 9-6 (2-4 CNE) on the season, while Roger Williams moves up to 8-6 (5-1 CNE).

Senior Alyvia Smith recorded her fourth 20-point performance of the season, finishing with 20 points on 7-of-19 shooting from the field while going a perfect 3-for-3 from the free-throw line. Smith also added three rebounds, one assist, one block, and one steal. Senior Adriana Romano chipped in eight points, while graduate student Summer Klein contributed five. Klein led the team defensively with three steals, and both Bison pulled down four rebounds apiece. 

The opening quarter was slow through the first six minutes, with most of the early action coming from the Hawks as they jumped out to an 11–3 lead with four minutes remaining. A strong layup by Romano and a transition three from Smith brought the Bison within three, but Roger Williams closed the quarter on an unanswered 8–0 run to take a 19–8 advantage. The late offensive surge carried into the second quarter, as the Hawks opened with a long jumper followed by an and-one layup to extend the lead to 16. Nichols struggled to find rhythm in the period, managing just nine points before the halftime horn. A layup from first-year Jaelize Rivera marked the Bison's final basket of the half.

A brief spark emerged for the Bison coming out of halftime, as Romano opened the scoring by knocking down a pair of free throws. Smith followed with a mid range jumper to cut the deficit to 14, but the momentum was short-lived. The Hawks continued to control the pace offensively, pulling away as the third quarter progressed to maintain a commanding advantage. The fourth quarter followed a similar script, as Nichols was unable to contain the Hawks. The Bison managed to trim the deficit to 24, but were unable to sustain the run and complete the comeback.

The Bison return to action on Wednesday, January 14, at 5:00 p.m., when they host the Golden Bears of Western New England University at the Nichols Athletic Center.