STANDISH, Maine (9/19/2026) – The Nichols College women's volleyball team earned their first win of the season today, splitting at the Saint Joseph's (Maine) Tri Match, beating the Bulldogs of Dean College 3-1 (17-25, 25-23, 25-20, 25-15) and dropping in three sets to the Monks of Saint Joseph's College of Maine (17-25, 7-25, 13-25) at the Harold Alfond Center.
With the split the Bison sit at 1-10 (0-0 CNE).
Match #1 vs Dean College (0-10, 0-2 GNAC)
The Bison's offensive surge was led by sophomore
Alyssa Morse, who recorded a double-double with 14 kills and 15 digs while hitting an impressive .206. Freshman
Rayna Joquin added seven kills, while junior
Gabrielle McKayle contributed six. Freshman
Naseem Hennouch found success from the service line with five aces, while freshmen
Lena Heini and
Ella Pratt each added three. Hennouch also dished out 18 assists, with Heini adding 11. Rodrigues and Bottone anchored the back row defensively, recording 12 and eight digs, respectively.
The Bison opened the match trailing early as Dean jumped out to a 10-4 advantage. Nichols battled back behind kills from Morse, McKayle and Pratt, cutting the deficit to four at 16-12. The Bulldogs, however, maintained their advantage and closed out the opening frame, 25-17.
Nichols responded in the second set, trading points with Dean early before the Bulldogs built an 8-5 lead. The Bison began to find their rhythm midway through the frame, using kills from Morse, McKayle and Pratt to pull even at 9-9 before taking an 11-9 lead. Dean regained control and stretched its advantage to 19-13, but Nichols refused to go quietly. The Bison mounted a late comeback, with kills from Joquin and Morse helping Nichols erase the deficit. Joquin delivered a key kill to bring the Bison within one at 22-21 before Nichols tied the set at 23-23. Morse then gave Nichols set point with a kill before she closed out the frame, 25-23, on a service ace.
The momentum carried into the third set as Nichols raced out to a 5-1 lead. After Dean trimmed the deficit to 6-5, the Bison responded with a 6-1 run highlighted by kills from Joquin and Morse and back-to-back service aces from Heini. Nichols continued to control the frame, building a 17-10 advantage. Dean attempted another comeback, cutting the lead to 18-14, but the Bison maintained their composure and closed out the set, 25-20, to take a 2-1 match lead.
Nichols was knocking on the door of their first win, building an early 8-5 advantage behind strong serving and a pair of Dean attack errors. After the Bulldogs pulled within one at 8-7, the Bison answered with a 5-1 run to take a 13-8 lead. Hennouch then took over from the service line, recording three consecutive aces to extend the Nichols lead to 16-9. The Bison continued to pull away late, with Pratt adding a kill and two more aces as Nichols pushed its advantage to 24-14. The Bulldogs scored once more, but Nichols closed out the match, 25-15, completing the 3-1 comeback victory.
Match #2 vs Saint Josephs Maine (5-5, 2-0 GNAC)
Nichols found contributions from across the court in its second match of the Saint Joseph's (Maine) Tri-Match, with Morse setting the pace offensively with seven kills and seven digs. Joquin added two kills, while multiple Bison chipped in with one kill apiece. McKayle provided a spark from the service line with two aces, while freshman Hennouch and Heini combined for nine assists, with Hennouch recording five and Heini adding four. Rodrigues anchored the back row with eight digs, while junior
Liliana Bottone contributed six.
The Bison opened the match with an early 3-2 advantage, getting service aces from Hennouch and McKayle. Saint Joseph's responded with a 7-1 0 run to take a 9-4 lead, but Nichols battled back behind kills from Morse and Senior
Jhudny Pierre to pull within 9-6. The Monks continued to build their lead, but Nichols stayed within striking distance after a McKayle ace helped cut the deficit to 18-14. Saint Joseph's answered with a late push to close out the opening set, 25-17.
The Monks carried their momentum into the second set, jumping out to a 7-1 lead before extending the advantage to 15-3. Nichols found contributions from Morse, McKayle and Joquin, but Saint Joseph's continued to control the set behind a strong service game. The Monks closed the frame on a 10-3 run to take the second set, 25-7.
Nichols came out strong in the third set, taking an early 4-3 lead following kills from Morse and Joquin. The Bison maintained a 6-4 advantage before Saint Joseph's responded with a 3-8 run to take control. Nichols continued to battle but the Monks extended their lead late and closed out the set, 25-13, to complete the sweep.
The Bison will return home next week to open conference play against the Wentworth Institute of Technology Leopards on Wednesday, September 23rd, at the Nichols Athletics Center.
