UTICA, N.Y. (3/21/2026) – After a shaky start in the first set, the Nichols men's volleyball team settled in to string three consecutive sets together in a 3-1 victory at SUNY Polytechnic Institute in conference play at the Kevin Grimmer Court.

The Bison bounce back from a setback yesterday evening and improve to 12-11 (5-0 NEVC), snapping an eight-game Wildcat win streak in the process. SUNY Poly, as a result, moves to 17-10 (3-2 NEVC) on the season.

After stumbling in the first set, 25-18, Nichols hit the reset button in a highly competitive second set. A pair of attack errors by the hosts boosted the Bison to a 9-6 advantage early on, which helped them stay one step ahead of the opponent through the midway point of the set. Then, with the score tied at 14-all, the two teams went point-for-point through five straight rallies, with the Bison denying the Wildcats any lead throughout. Nichols eventually restored its three-point lead over the Wildcats, once again fueled by consecutive Wildcat errors, but still found it tough to contain the opposing attack late in the action, with the set decision being forced into a tiebreak at 24-24. Despite the challenge, back-to-back kills by Connor Snow finished the job for the Bison, tying the match 1-1 by a final of 26-24. 

With the momentum from the second set, the Bison delivered a balanced attack in the third set, out-hitting SUNY Poly .424 to .167 with 19 total kills. Nichols hit the ground running with an early 6-2 lead behind kills from Austin Gavin and Bryce Bonville, which later grew to as many as seven points midway through on a bomb from Adam Vincent to the back corner. From there, the Bison entered cruise control, and later bombarded the host with another four straight kills between Bonville, Vincent and Evan Sachs, making it 20-12 Nichols. In the end, the lead proved insurmountable for the Wildcats, with the Bison winning by way of a final service error, 25-15.

Leading 2-1 in the match, the Bison encountered some turbulence in the third set with SUNY Poly taking a 17-10 lead. However, Nichols refused to back down from the fight, and erased the seven-point difference with a 10-4 run, pulling them to within one point of the Wildcats at 21-20 on a Bradyn Pomainville kill. Still trailing by one two rallies later, Bryce Bonville tagged the tying kill to make is a 23-23 score, with the score then deadlocking at 25-25 shortly thereafter following a series of Wildcat errors. The comeback attempt was made official for the Bison on a Sachs kill to give them the go-ahead point at 26-25, forcing the Wildcats into a timeout, leading to another sequence exchanged points. With the score tied at 27-all, the Bison benefited from a Wildcat attack error, before a final Vincent kill delivered the winning point for the Bison, 29-27.

Men's Volleyball returns to action on Wednesday, March 25th at Merrimack College (7-10), beginning at 6:00 PM.