DUDLEY, Mass. (5/1/2026) – The Nichols College baseball team split a dramatic Conference of New England doubleheader with Wentworth Institute of Technology on Friday afternoon at the Nichols Baseball Field, falling 10-8 in game one before storming back for an 8-7 walk-off victory in game two. With the win in game two, the Bison clinched playoff berth into the CNE tournament, where they will wait to see who they will face in the first round.
With the split, Nichols end the regular season at 22-17 (10-8 CNE) on the season, while Wentworth end their regular season at 21-18 (8-10 CNE).
Game One: Wentworth 10, Nichols 8
Wentworth took the opener despite a late Nichols rally, using a balanced offensive attack to build a 10-5 lead before holding off the Bison comeback attempt. Nichols struck first in the opening inning as
Anthony Hackert tripled, sending home
Jack Raymond before
Adam Pivacek added a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0.
The Leopards answered with runs in each of the next four innings, highlighted by a three-run fifth and four-run seventh to seize control. Nichols chipped away at the lead with an RBI single from
Tyler Ladouceur in the fifth and a two-run single from
Collin Harty in the seventh. The Bison nearly completed the comeback in the eighth when Raymond launched a three-run homer to right, cutting the deficit to 10-8, but Wentworth closed the door in the ninth.
Raymond paced Nichols in game one, finishing 2-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs, while
Ryan Keating reached base four times and scored three runs. Hackert added an RBI triple, and Harty drove in two runs.
Game Two: Nichols 8, Wentworth 7
Game two delivered even more drama as Nichols erased multiple deficits to earn a thrilling walk-off win to end the regular season. Wentworth jumped out to a 5-0 lead through three innings, but Nichols began to claw back when Raymond belted a solo homer in the third.
The Bison cut the deficit to 5-3 in the seventh after Hackert delivered an RBI single and aggressive baserunning led to another run scoring on a throwing error. Wentworth responded with two insurance runs in the eighth to make it 7-3, but Nichols answered immediately as
Tyler Ladouceur launched a solo home run and
Brady Wendell brought home another run with an RBI groundout to make it 7-5.
Trailing by two entering the ninth, Nichols completed the comeback in dramatic fashion.
Ryan Keating crushed a two-run homer to center to tie the game at 7-7, and after
Andrew Rocca advanced to third on a stolen base and throwing error, Charles Macelhiney lined a walk-off single to left-center to become the Bison's hero and seal the 8-7 victory.
Macelhiney starred in game two, going 3-for-5 with the game-winning RBI, while Keating's clutch homer tied the contest, and Raymond added his second long ball of the day. On the mound,
Aidan Whitten kept Nichols within striking distance by tossing eight innings before
Mitch Brown earned the win with a scoreless ninth inning in relief.
Coach
Tim Mayo and the Bison clinch playoff berth with today's results for the sixth straight season, with Mayo making a playoff appearance in every full season he coached for the Bison. They will play in the first round of the conference tournament on Wednesday, May 6th. The time, location, and opponent of the first round game are still to be determined.
