WESTON, Mass. – Regis College rallied from behind to win the third set and extend the match, but Nichols College was able to close the deal in the fourth set to emerge victorious, 3-1 (25-19, 25-17, 23-25, 25-15), Wednesday night in a non-conference men's collegiate volleyball match at Higgins Court.

Matt Ferrara (Sandown, N.H.) led the Pride with 12 kills, followed by Joseph Perez (Miami, Fla.) with nine kills. Defensively, Kostea Andreenko (Marstons Mills, Mass.) paced the team with five block assists to go along with six kills, and Marcello Cappuccio (Scotch Plains, N.J.) finished with a team-high 11 digs.

Nichols won the first two sets and took a 15-9 lead in the third set after four straight points, including kills by Tanner Soracco and Nick Lavrenchuk. After calling timeout, Regis put together an 8-2 scoring run, led by Perez with three kills and a block assist, to pull into a 17-17 tie. The Bison pulled ahead, 22-20, but the Pride responded by scoring five of the final six points of the set, led by two kills and a block assist by Josh Nolen (Falls Church, Va.).

The Bison scored eight straight points early in the fourth set, led by two kills and two block assists from Soracco, but the Pride closed to within three at 9-6. Nichols would score three unanswered points to extend its advantage to six points, followed by another quick three-point stretch to increase its lead to nine at 21-12. The Bison would close out the set and the match on a kill by Ray Wang and a Regis error.

Soracco finished with a team-high 15 kills along with seven digs, while Lavrenchuk notched a double-double with 11 kills and 11 digs. Wang also ended up with 11 kills to go along with three service aces, five digs, and three solo blocks. Nichols setter Nick Martin collected 31 assists, two service aces, and seven digs, and libero Nicholas Basco also earned seven digs as well as four assists.

In the opening set, Nichols took the lead for good on consecutive kills by Lavrenchuk, who also posted two late kills to help the Bison clinch the first set. After a kill by Ferrara brought the Pride within one at 10-9 in the second set, the Bison gained control thanks to a 9-1 scoring run, and the visitors would establish a 2-0 match lead on a kill by Wang.

Regis College (6-9) hosts SUNY Potsdam Friday, March 11, starting at 7 p.m. at Higgins Court. Nichols College (9-8) plays its conference opener at Sage in Albany, N.Y., Saturday, March 12, beginning at 5 p.m.