The Tufts volleyball team finally broke .500 this week, a mark which hasn't been reached since the latter half of September. Now with a 14-13 record, the team is looking towards the postseason.
"It feels good to be over .500," coach Kris Talon said, "but we are more focused firstly, on winning games in our conference; secondly, winning games period; and thirdly, preparing for the conference playoffs. Our goal is to be in the top three in the conference."
On Wednesday, the Brown and Blue played a single match at Clark University. This past weekend, the squad played in another NESCAC Weekend, this time traveling to Middlebury. Finally, the squad faced Brandeis in its final home match of the season last night.
The Brandeis match marked the final game that the seniors - Kyre Austin, Karen "Bear" Sillers, and Nancy Phear - would play on home territory for the Brown and Blue. Unfortunately, the Jumbos lost the match in four games (11-15, 15-10, 10-15, 6-15).
"Passing was the problem tonight," Talon said. "They took advantage of our mistakes. We got down on ourselves because we were not passing, and things snowballed from there. We play them again on Friday and expect to win."
"It was a very disappointing match," Austin said. "We went in excited to play as it was our last home game of the season, but the enthusiasm dropped off as soon as we got on the court. Our passing was off, and we had trouble with our offense, which are two aspects that we've had great consistency and success with lately, so it was all the more frustrating. We play Brandeis again this weekend, and we're looking forward to proving ourselves the better team."
On Saturday, as part of the NESCAC Weekend, Tufts faced Middlebury, Hamilton, and Williams.
Against Middlebury, which is ranked number one in the conference, the squad suffered a hard loss, winning only one of the four games (8-15, 15-8, 12-15, 10-15).
"Passing was not as good as it needed to be," Talon said. "We needed a side-out offense. We are not a great team first thing in the morning. We had opportunities, but we just didn't get it done."
Though Talon was slightly disappointed, she added, "It was a good match. We should have won game three. [We] couldn't get tough enough. [We] fought in game four but just didn't get it done."
Throughout the match the team posted its typical stats. The "killer S's" of "Bear" Sillers and Stewart were unstoppable during the match. The two combined for a total of 30 kills and 16 digs, while Austin led the defense with 16 digs.
"Kyre is a great defensive player and was able to play up their attacks," tri-captain Phear said. "Who makes digs really depends on where the other team is hitting the ball to. A smart team will attack the right side, trying to take the setter out with the first ball so that she can't set the offense with the second ball."
In the afternoon, Phear and her squad faced Hamilton. The Jumbos dominated the match, only allowing the Continentials to win one game (15-9, 15-13, 8-15, 15-13). During the match, three players had attacking averages over .300, which is a great achievement. Amy Cronin had 19 kills and only two attacking errors, which gave her an average of .586.
"That high of an average is unheard of," Talon said. Megan Pitcavage led the defense with an incredible 29 digs.
"We were able to play around with the line-ups, resting people, and using other players," Phear said. "Whenever you're playing such a team-oriented sport with a mixed line-up it makes it difficult. But we are able to do that and come out on top of Hamilton because we are the stronger team."
Sillers sat out the Hamilton match in order to rest her sore back. "'Bear' is our most experienced and consistent player," Talon said. "When she doesn't play, it is a testament to the depth of our team. Sarah [Leistikow] and Paulette [Pacheco] played in Bear's spot and did very well."
To end the event, the Jumbos squared off against Williams. The two "fairly evenly matched teams" went five games and Tufts pulled out the win (13-15, 12-15, 15-10, 15-11, 15-9). The duo of Sillers and Stewart topped the stat box with 22 and 20 kills, respectively, and 15 digs each. The real leader of the defense was Pacheco with 19 digs. Austin shined with three service aces. Once again, as in the match against Hamilton, three Jumbos had attacking percentages over .300 - Sillers (.340), Pitcavage (.375), and Cronin (.308).
"We played harder and better in the games that we won than they did in the games they won," Talon said. "We wanted it more. We knew we were going to win because we have more weapons. It was a huge win for us because it proved to ourselves that we can get what we want."
"Williams is a talented team," Phear said. "We stepped up and played the game we've wanted to play all season. We played strongly, as a team, united. We pulled all aspects of our own game together to overcome Williams."
Before the weekend; however, the Brown and Blue played one match against Clark University. Talon's squad, after having a dismal start, fought back to take the Cougars in five games (6-15, 6-15, 15-9, 15-13, 15-4). Stewart was top on the day with 24 kills, 16 digs, and four blocks. Austin commanded the defense with 17 kills. Phear led service aces with three.
"This game was a big turning point for us," Talon said. "Clark played very well in games one and two. We were the superior team in the match. We played as bad as we could have played, while the coach for Clark told me that they had played the best they could have played. I am proud of the effort that we showed to come back. We came out slow and got it back."
"We always knew that we would win, there was no doubt of that," Phear said. "But we let that affect our game in the first two games. We turned our game around and showed that our true fighting spirit in the last three games. Plus, we love to rally."
Next, the Jumbos will play in the Hall of Fame Tournament on Friday, Oct. 20th.
