AUBURNDALE, Fla. – The Nichols College baseball team dropped a 3-2 decision to UMass Dartmouth on Friday night in non-conference action at Lake Myrtle Park in Auburndale, Fla.
 
The Bison dip to 1-3 on the year and are right back in action tomorrow afternoon with a doubleheader starting at 1:15 p.m. against Ohio Northern before facing off with the No. 1 team in the nation, UMass Boston, at 4:45 p.m. The Corsairs improve to 2-0 on the season with the win.
 
Trailing 3-1 in the bottom of the ninth, senior Chris Anderson drove in a run with an RBI groundout to plate sophomore Christopher Cerniglia. The Bison still had two runners in scoring position with two outs, but UMass Dartmouth sophomore Robbie Carrillo closed the door by striking out the final batter he faced to earn his first save of the year.
 
Anderson drove in both runs for the Bison while going 1-for-5 on the day. Senior Cam Cook went 2-for-5, while sophomore Christian Naccari and freshman Alex Stroshine each went 1-for-4, with Stroshine scoring a run. Sophomore Kyle Bouchard picked up the other hit for Nichols, going 1-for-3 at the dish.
 
Junior Danny Hayden earned a no decision for the Bison, tossing six innings and allowing only one run on four hits with a pair of walks and seven strikeouts. Senior Jackson White suffered the setback, allowing a pair of runs (one earned) on one hit with two strikeouts. Freshman Justin Hurley scattered two hits and a walk with one strikeout over the final two innings of the game.
 
UMass Dartmouth sophomore Nate Tellier led the Corsair offense going 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored. Junior Erick Ramirez also went 2-for-4, while senior Kenny Michael and sophomore Mitch Baker each went 1-for-4. Senior Ben Lodge earned the win, striking out 12 batters over 6.2 innings and allowing one unearned run on five hits with three walks. Carrillo earned the save, pitching the final 2.1 innings and allowing a run on one hit with a walk and three punchouts.
 
The Corsairs struck first as Tellier worked his way to third and eventually scored on the throw to first following a dropped third strike to put UMass Dartmouth in front 1-0. Nichols answered in their half of the third as Anderson drove in Stroshine with an RBI double to left to knot the game at 1-1.
 
UMass Dartmouth then took advantage of a pair of wild pitches with runners on third in both the seventh and eighth innings to build a 3-1 lead headed into the ninth.
 
Cerniglia led off the ninth by working a one-out walk and he moved to second when Stroshine laid down a bunt single to put runners on first and second. Cook reached on a fielder's choice to load the bases, and Anderson grounded out to make it a 3-2 game with runners still in scoring position but two outs. Carrillo eventually worked out of the jam and helped the Corsairs pull out the close win.
 
All-Time Series
Friday marked the 31st meeting between the two programs and the Corsairs lead the all-time series, 19-11-1.