DUDLEY, Mass. - There was no shortage of drama in the gym at Nichols College on Wednesday night as the Bison pushed UMass Boston Volleyball to five sets before the Beacons secured a thrilling 3-2 victory.

THE BASICS
UMass Boston 3, Nichols College 2

UMass Boston (8-5, 0-1 LEC)
Nichols College (8-3, 0-1 CCC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Beacons opened up a quick 22-15 lead in the opening set on Wednesday, looking to secure their first point of the match. The Bison made the match interesting with a 5-2 run, cutting the lead to 24-20. Mya Perron ended the comeback attempt quickly with her second kill of the set. The entire night would be dominated by the freshman Perron, who finished with a team-high 15 kills and 17 match points.

The second set of the night went back and forth early, but the Beacons used two different 5-1 runs to put the Bison away quietly, 25-16. Perron provided six kills in the second set victory.

In the third set, it was Nichols who put together a dominant run, outsourcing the Beacons 12-3 across 15 serves to take a big lead. UMass Boston chipped away at the lead but eventually fell 25-15, pushing the match to a fourth set.

The two squads kept the fourth set as tight as possible with neither surrendering a sustained run to the other. Another clutch kill from Perron had the Beacons leading 22-21 late, but it was the Bison who closed out the match with a 4-1 run, necessitating a decisive fifth set.

As is always the case in the fifth set, the goal of each team switched from a race to 25 points to a race to 15. Nichols improbable comeback looked to have legs as the Bison jumped out to a 12-8 lead. With their backs against the wall, the Beacons got exactly what they needed. A chorus of Bison errors combined with a kill from Perron and a pair of kills from Taryn Broughal secured the 15-13 victory in the set and the 3-2 match win.

BY THE NUMBERS

• In her first year at UMass Boston, Perron ranks fourth on the team in both kills (51) and points (64.5)
• Ruby Ackerman posted a career-high 40 assists on Wednesday
• Ally Dean led the way with 20 digs with Paige Coulson's 15 ranking close behind
• Broughal finished the match with a season-high five total blocks
• Wednesday marked the first-ever meeting between the two programs

WHO'S NEXT
The Beacons return to their home court on Saturday, September 30 to face Salem State University for a 2 PM LEC matchup.