The volleyball team traveled to Western Massachusetts this weekend and continued to impress teams around New England, finishing in second place in the annual Hall of Fame Classic Tournament, co-hosted by Smith and Mount Holyoke Colleges.
The Jumbos, who finished behind only regional powerhouse Williams in the standings, upped their overall record to 24-4 overall, overtaking the Coast Guard Academy as the second-ranked team in New England.
Senior co-captain Emily Macy and sophomore Kelli Harrison led the charge for the Jumbos, both being named to the All-Tournament team. Macy led the defensive charge for Tufts with 63 digs in four games, while Harrison carried the offensive with 74 kills and just 10 errors.
The Jumbos, coming off a five-game match with the Springfield College Pride in the semi-finals, dropped three straight games to the Ephs, 30-16, 30-18 and 30-26 in the championship match.
According to coach Cora Thompson, fatigue was a key factor in the finals.
"We will not use it as an excuse by any means, but when you play such a physical and emotional five game match against a powerhouse team like Springfield, and then have an hour of rest before taking on the top team in the region, it's going to affect you a little bit," Thompson said.
The loss snapped a 16-game winning streak for the Jumbos that dated back to Sept. 25, one of the longest streaks in team history.
Despite the finish, Thompson still had good feelings about the weekend.
"It's a huge accomplishment," Thompson said. "Being second out of 16 teams [and] playing the best teams in New England [allowed us to] prove ourselves in New England this weekend."
Senior setter Rebecca Schaevitz dished out 30 assists in the game, with sophomore Kelli Harrison leading the way in kills with eight. Freshman Kay Lutostanski added seven kills with no errors.
Thompson was not discouraged by the loss to the Ephs.
"I was very proud of the effort we showed all the way through the Williams match," Thompson said. "You can see by the scores that we improved every game of the match and that was impressive."
The Jumbos will have a chance to exact revenge against the Ephs when the two face off again on Oct. 30. The match, which will conclude the NESCAC season for both teams, could determine which squad hosts the NESCAC postseason tournament the following week.
Despite dropping all three games to the Ephs, the Jumbos feel positive about the coming rematch.
"Coach [Thompson] kept telling us [losing to Williams in the final is] not that big of a deal because it was not an official NESCAC game," freshman Stephanie Viola said. "Now, we know what to expect for next time."
While the Jumbos will have to wait for the chance to take revenge on the Ephs, they got their chance to avenge a Sept. 24 MIT Invitational loss to Springfield, beating them in five games in the semifinals on Saturday.
With neither team winning a game by more than five points, the Jumbos squeaked out the competitive match 30-25, 29-31, 30-28, 27-30 and 15-12.
Schaevitz distributed 60 assists as Harrison and freshman Katie Wysham recorded 22 and 15 kills, respectively.
Harrison and Wysham also contributed on defense as Harrison's 20 digs were second only to senior co-captain Emily Macy's 23. Wysham also contributed five solo blocks and three assists.
"It was good to have beaten everyone, but it was especially good to beat [Springfield]," Viola said. "Revenge had been necessary for a long time since they had beaten us in five games last year, and then in five this year in our house."
The Jumbos' win over Springfield was not their only win against a team that had beaten them earlier in the season. Tufts downed Wellesley- 31-29, 30-13 and 30-25 - in its second match of the tournament. This was the third match between the two teams this season. The Jumbos defeated the Blue 3-0 on Sept. 2, just a week after losing to them 3-1.
Led by four solo blocks and three assists from Wysham, the Jumbos tallied 13.5 blocks. Wysham was also key on the offensive attack as her 12 kills tied Harrison's 12 for the team lead.
"We don't see all these matches as revenge," Thompson said. "Of course it feels good, but it feels better to know that we are consistently playing well."
The Jumbos opened the tournament with a 3-0 win over co-host Mount Holyoke. Tufts used nine team service aces and 12 kills from Harrison to defeat the Lyons 30-25, 30-16 and 30-19.
"Mount Holyoke is a much improved team, but was certainly the weaker team and this was an example of [our] having to go into a match and take care of business," Thompson said. "We were efficient and proved that we were the stronger team, no doubt."
On Oct. 19, Tufts concluded its home schedule with a 3-0 victory over Brandeis. The Jumbos, playing on their senior night, won 30-21, 30-21 and 30-17. Tufts used eight service aces, three each by Harrison and Schaevitz, to sink the Judges.
"We played well, taking care of business in three games," Thompson said. "Although Brandeis has an average record, they are a very tall and strong team. We had to serve them tough and hit smart to win it. Defense once again kept us going and we were able to pull off the W."
