DUDLEY, Mass. (1/14/2026) - The Nichols College Bison hosted the Golden Bears of Western New England in a conference matchup at Nichols Athletic Center on Wednesday night, but fell short to the Golden Bears by a score of 61-34.

 The loss now puts the Bison at 9-7 (2-5 CNE)) overall on the season, while WNE improves to 10-4 (4-2 CNE).

It was a tough evening for the Bison from a shooting standpoint, with the team only hitting 12-of-61 (19.7%) shots from the field and only 1-of-20 (5.0%) from three. Despite the hard loss, senior Adriana Romano pitched in on both sides of the ball, totaling nine points on 5- of -13 shooting and six rebounds. Junior Rylee Barrieault performed well defensively with four steals, while Alyvia Smith paired seven points with two rebounds.

The Bison were held scoreless for the majority of the first quarter, until Tianna Fernandez put up their first points on the night with 2:30 left in the opening quarter, attempting to get the Bison in a rhythm. After trading a series of baskets to open the second stanza, senior Kya Burdier drew a foul for a trip to the free throw line, which were both made  to cut the guest lead to seven points. However, with halftime approaching, the Bison let up a second Golden Bear 10-point drive, leaving them in a 30-12 hole going into the half.

WNE opened the second half with a quick three and pair of layups, before the Bison responded courtesy of an Adriana Romano layup and Smith triple. Despite Nichols brief comeback attempts, it would not be enough as the Golden Bears continued to storm the court with success from all over the floor, consistently converting their opportunities and pushing the pace. When all was said and done, the Golden Bears would walk off the floor with the win, 61-34.

Nichols returns to home play on Saturday, January 17^th when they face the University of Hartford (8-7, 5-1 CNE) at Nichols Athletic Center, with tip off at 1:00 PM.