DUDLEY, Mass. – The Nichols Bison took a pair of games from the Becker Hawks on Saturday afternoon in doubleheader play in what marked Opening Day for the Hawks program.

THE BASICS

March 20, 2021

Nichols Softball Field

Becker Hawks 0-2

Nichols Bison 2-2

GAME ONE: Nichols 3 – Becker 0

Nichols put up their three runs in the first two innings, taking a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first thanks to a bases loaded walk drawn by freshman Hailey Bogusz (Montague, Mass.). The Hawks escaped the inning with a strikeout and a groundout to trail 1-0 after the first.

The Bison added to their lead in the second, starting with sophomore Kamryn Gurnee-Mims (Griswold, Conn.) stealing home to give Nichols a 2-0 lead. Later in the inning an RBI double by sophomore Allie Brown (Middlebury, Conn.) increased the lead to 3-0.

Bison junior Candice Nelson (Oxford, Mass.) pitched seven shutout innings for Nichols, allowing three hits while striking out nine.

Hawks junior Ashley Veillette (Danielson, Conn.) pitched six innings for the Hawks, allowing three unearned runs and five strikeouts in the loss.

---

Brown batted 2-for-4 in game one, including the RBI double in the second. Grad student Taylor Commesso (Hingham, Mass.) and junior Mackenzie Bourgault (Fairhaven, Mass.) both batted 1-for-3.

Veillette, and juniors Elizabeth Simonian (Auburn, Mass.) and Emily Iacovelli (Northbridge, Mass.) all had one hit for the Hawks.

Winning Pitcher: Nelson (1-1)

Losing Pitcher: Veillette (0-1)

GAME TWO: Nichols 6 – Becker 1

The Bison once again took an early advantage in their game two victory over the Hawks, scoring three runs in the bottom of the first inning.

Already leading 1-0 because of a Hawks error, the Bison added two more runs on back-to-back RBI doubles by freshman Hailey Bogusz (Montague, Mass.) and grad student Katrina Valeri (Middleton, Mass.) to take a 3-0 lead through the first inning.

The Bison grew their lead to 6-0 through five innings but in the top of the sixth, the Hawks found the scoreboard on a solo home run by sophomore Holly Letourneau (Woonsocket, R.I.) to cut the deficit to the final score of 6-1.

---

Valeri and grad student Taylor Commesso (Hingham, Mass.) both finished 2-for-3 in game two, each with a double.

Hawks junior Elizabeth Simonian (Auburn, Mass.) batted 2-for-4, both singles. Junior Emily Iacovelli (Northbridge, Mass.) had a double in game two.

Winning Pitcher: Alyssa Ouellette (1-1)

Losing Pitcher: Lindsay Mitchell (0-1)