BRISTOL, R.I. – The Nichols College men's lacrosse team fell to conference opponent Roger Williams, 9-4, on Wednesday evening at Bayside Field.
With the loss, the Bison move to 7-6 overall and 3-2 in conference play, while the Hawks improve to 5-8 overall and 3-2 in league action.
Nichols was led offensively by
Shea Ullo and
Jack Campbell, who each recorded two goals. Ullo also added an assist for a team-high three points.
Tyler Olivo,
Jonah Libby, and
Conor Doherty each tallied an assist to round out the Bison scoring.
Defensively, goalkeeper
Carter Renaud played all 60 minutes in net, finishing with 11 saves while facing 38 shots, including 20 on goal. He also collected four ground balls in a strong effort anchoring the Nichols defense.
Roger Williams opened the scoring midway through the first quarter and quickly added a man-up goal to take a 2-0 lead. Despite several early shot opportunities from Nichols, the Bison were unable to break through in the opening frame and trailed 2-0 after one.
In the second quarter, the Hawks extended their lead to 3-0 before Campbell got Nichols on the board at the 11:44 mark off a feed from Libby. Roger Williams responded with three unanswered goals to close out the half, taking a 6-1 advantage into the break.
Nichols showed signs of life early in the third quarter, as Campbell netted his second goal of the game off an assist from Ullo to cut the deficit to 6-2. However, the Hawks answered once again to maintain control, extending their lead to 7-2 heading into the fourth.
In the final frame, Ullo sparked the offense with a goal just 45 seconds into the quarter, finishing off a pass from Olivo to make it 7-3. Roger Williams responded with back-to-back goals to push the lead to 9-3. Ullo added his second goal of the game late, assisted by Doherty, but Nichols was unable to close the gap further as the Hawks secured the 9-4 victory.
Nichols held advantages in ground balls (41-35) and faceoffs (11-5), but turnovers and missed opportunities limited the Bison's ability to capitalize offensively.
The Bison will be back home for their next matchup taking on conference opponet the Golden Bears of Western New England at Vendetti Field, on April 11th at 1:00PM.
