NEW LONDON, Conn. (3/19/2026) – Baseball traveled to Mitchell College for a Thursday afternoon game versus the Mariners. The Bison used a third inning push and a strong showing on the mound to defeat Mitchell College 8-1, earning a non-conference road victory in their first game back from their spring break trip.
 
With the win, the Bison move to 4-5 on the season, while the Mariners drop to 6-5.
 
The first two innings were quiet for both teams, as neither team could find a run. Nichols struck first, generating offense in the third innings to establish momentum. The Bison put pressure on the Mariners' pitching staff, stringing together five hits from Ryan Keating, Anthony Hackert, Brady Wendell, Julian Galvan, and Collin Harty to build a lead. Hackert's single drove in Keating from third before Wendell sent Hackert home with a single. With the bases loaded, Harty hit a 2 RBI single to left field to make the score 4-0 going into the bottom of the fourth.
 
Mitchell responded at the bottom of the third, capitalizing on a few key hits and a walk to close the gap and keep the game within reach. After Kenneth Miller Jr. singled and sent home a runner to make it 4-1, senior starting pitcher Aidan Whitten got himself out of the jam by having Chas Terni Jr. fly out to Tyler Ladouceur before he would sling it to Hackert at second base to turn the double play. Whitten limited further damage through the next couple of innings before he got pulled after 5.1, ending the game with 96 pitches thrown for three strikeouts and an ERA of 1.69.
 
The Bison created separation in the later innings, adding insurance runs in the top of the eighth inning with a SAC fly from Kyle Birks drove home Andrew Rocca and an RBI double from Ryan Keating. In the ninth inning, Nichols added two more runs and Abe Anderson came in as the closing pitcher to shut the door in the final inning to secure the 8-1 win for the Bison.
 
On the mound, Nichols received a solid outing from Whitten to earn the win and relief pitcher Clark Churchill, who pitched 2.2 innings with three strikeouts and no runs allowed, kept Mitchell from completing a comeback.
 
Offensively, Keating, Hackert, and Wendell all had multi-hit performances, while six different players recorded at least one RBI in the game.
 
Baseball is back in action in two days, when they travel to Wheaton College on Saturday, March 21st, for a doubleheader against the Lyons. Game one is scheduled to start at Millbury High School at noon.