Late Gibbs Goal Lifts Gulls Over Bison 2-1

DUDLEY, Mass. – In a critical Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) match up, sophomore Connor Gibbs' (Westborough, Mass.) first goal of the season gave the Gulls the lead late as Endicott slipped past host Nichols, 2-1.  The Gulls improve to 8-6-3 on the year and 3-2-2 in league play while the Bison dip to 10-6-0 overall and 4-3-0 in the CCC.  The win now moves Endicott into soul possession of fourth place in the CCC standings while Nichols remains in third.

Gibbs one-timed a throw in from junior Alex Elia (Somers, Conn.) to put the visitors ahead 2-1 with 11:03 remaining in regulation.

Earlier in the match, the Bison struck first as first-year Donny Whittle (Ellington, Conn.) netted his 11th goal of the year to extend his point streak to eight matches. The freshman now leads the CCC in scoring with 24 points on the season.  Senior Scott Coderre (Thompson, Conn.) sent a pass to Whittle who beat the keeper with a roller to the right corner of the net at 14:57. In the 33rd minute sophomore Justin Lavallee's (Wrentham, Mass.) boot from the 20-yard line soared just out of the net minder's reach to even the match at 1-1.  Rookie Jordan Daniel (Canton, Conn.) helped create the scoring chance and was awarded the assist.  Daniels is now one point behind Whittle for the CCC points lead as he has 23.  Nichols took both corner kicks of the first half while Endicott had a slight 7-5 edge in the shot column.

The Gulls had advantages in both shots (7-4) and corners (2-1) after the break. Senior Daniel Higgins (South Kingstown, R.I.) made four stops in the Gull victory while first-year Alex Geas (Somers, Conn.) turned away six shots for the Bison.  Higgins was able to improve his record to 6-3-2 on the season while Geas' dropped to 8-6-0.  

Both squads continue conference play on Saturday. Endicott hosts Salve Regina at 12:00 p.m., while Nichols heads into Boston for a 3:30 p.m. match at Wentworth.