October 22, 2011
Nichols Bests Eastern Nazarene, 3-2
DUDLEY, Mass. (Oct. 22) – Nichols sophomore Brendan Whitson (Auburn, Mass.) netted a pair of goals to lead Nichols past Eastern Nazarene in a Commonwealth Coast Conference men's soccer contest on Saturday afternoon. With the win, Nichols posts double-digit victories for the fourth consecutive year and sit at 10-4-2 overall and 5-3-1 in the conference while the Lions slip to 3-14 on the season and 0-8 in the league.
Freshman Luis Lopez (Alexandria, Va.) put Eastern Nazarene on the scoreboard 19 minutes into the contest for an early 1-0 lead. Lopez capitalized on a rebound and bested the Nichols netminder. The Bison held a slim 9-7 edge on shots and led 3-1 on corner kick opportunities heading into the break.
Just over 10 minutes into the second half senior Danny Smith (Verona, N.J.) evened the match with a header served up by classmate Eric Kelly (Dover Plains, N.Y.). Six minutes later Whitson deposited his first tally off a free kick taken by Smith. Sophomore Fred Willard (Webster, Mass.) setup a Whitson chip shot for the 3-1 advantage.
With 37 seconds remaining senior Jon Corbin (Fallston, Md.) sliced into the Bison lead with a free kick from 20-yards out.
Senior Brendan Hamilton (North Attleboro, Mass.) recorded four saves in his 45th career win as junior Seagers Rodrigues (Belgaum, India) amassed seven saves for the Lions.
Prior to the match George Quireyns (Holbrook, Mass.), David Johnson (Canterbury, Conn.) along with Kelly, Smith and Hamilton were honored for their contributions to Nichols Athletics and the men's soccer program as part of Senior Day.
The Bison have secured the No. 3 seed in the upcoming CCC tournament and will host Wentworth on Saturday, October 29. Eastern Nazarene plays its conference and season finale at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday when the team ventures to University of New England.
