Nichols turned a tough task into a win-win situation on Saturday. The Vikings, scheduled to open Monsignor Martin Association play at defending Manhattan Cup champion St. Joe’s, came away with a 64-51 victory in boys basketball.

Nichols’ Will Regan had 20 points and 16 rebounds and Ron Canestro added 14 points before a packed gym at St. Joe’s. A 21-point fourth quarter helped Nichols hold off the Marauders while improving its record to 9-1, 1-0.

The game was a rematch from last year’s Manhattan Cup final won by St. Joe’s, 55-50.

“St. Joe’s came out firing and playing hard. They were being very aggressive and luckily we responded,” Nichols coach Greg Plumb said. “Any time you go into their place, you better be pumped up. Even though were were 8-1 going in, we had the mind-set that we’re all 0-0. This was a nice win. We wanted to set the tone in the league.”

Nichols’ Ben Meyer made the most of his start, netting 11 points. He was filling in for Chris Stegeman, who was battling flu-like symptoms and played sparingly.

St. Joe’s was led by Tom Escott with 13 points and Kyle Wojciechowski scored 12.

Also in the MMA, Blair Helton and Andrew Zdroweski had 13 points each as Canisius defeated St. Francis, 67-37, in the MMA opener for both teams.

New mark at Lew-Port

Robby Seyler became the all-time scoring leader at Lew- Port as he poured in 42 points in an 81-75 win over Niagara Catholic. Seyler, with 1,390 points, surpassed Rich King’s record of 1,347 (1961). Seyler’s 42 points also earned him a share of the single-game record with Steve Murphy (1974).

St. Francis advances

St. Francis Prep will play St. Andrews (Ont.) today for the title of the eighth annual St. Francis Invitational Prep Hockey Tournament.

The title game is scheduled for 11:30 a. m. at Leisure Rinks in West Seneca. On Saturday, the Red Raiders beat Shadyside Academy, 5-3, and then eliminated defending champion Wyoming Seminary with a 3-3 tie to earn a berth into the final.

Matt Ganci and Anthony Day had two goals each against Shadyside while Jamie Vona scored a pair against Seminary.