DUDLEY, Mass. (4/7/2026) – The Nichols College baseball team erupted for four runs in the seventh inning to rally past Johnson & Wales University 4-1 on Tuesday afternoon at the Baseball Field. The Bison pitching staff allowed only one run on the day, with junior
Mitch Brown coming in at the top of the seventh inning to earn the Conference of New England win.
Nichols improves to 11-9 overall and 5-2 in the CNE on the season, while Johnson & Wales falls to 7-15 (2-5 CNE).
The Wildcats struck first in the opening inning, using an RBI single from Jack Obert to take a 1-0 lead. That would be the only run allowed by the Bison pitching staff, as Nichols settled in and kept the game within reach through the middle innings.
After being held scoreless through six innings, Nichols broke through in the seventh in a big way.
Collin Harty sparked the rally with a solo home run to tie the game at 1-1. Later in the inning,
Kyle Birks singled and advanced into scoring position before
Ben White drove him in with an RBI single to give Nichols the lead. The Bison kept the pressure on as
Andrew Rocca doubled to put runners in scoring position, and
Anthony Hackert followed with an RBI walk.
Julian Galvan capped the inning with an RBI fielder's choice, pushing the lead to 4-1.
In the bottom of the seventh, junior pitcher
Mitch Brown came in, pitching three scoreless innings and allowing just two hits to close the door and secure the comeback victory.
Nichols finished with 10 hits on the day, led by Rocca and White with two apiece. Harty's home run highlighted the offense, while Hackert and Galvan each added an RBI.
Starter
Andrew Rocca delivered a strong outing, going 5.1 innings while allowing just one run on four hits and striking out four.
Abe Anderson bridged the gap out of the bullpen, and
Mitch Brown earned the win after tossing three scoreless innings to end the game. Defensively, the Bison were sharp, turning four double plays to help shut down any potential rallies from Johnson & Wales.
The Bison return to action tomorrow, hosting Rivier University at the Nichols Baseball Field for a 3:30 PM non-conference game.
