Losing two games to none to the Amherst Lord Jeffs on Saturdayafternoon, at Amherst, the Tufts volleyball team dug deep andrallied to win three straight games over thethen-tied-for-first-place Jeffs and stay perfect in its NESCACseason at 7-0.
The rally allowed the Jumbos to avoid their 13th straight lossto Amherst and kept the Jumbos on pace with first place Williams(8-0). The win also improved the Jumbos overall record to 20-3 onthe season, tied for tops among NESCAC schools with Williams.
"We came out tight and tentative, and it affected our playtremendously," coach Cora Thompson said. "We were overplaying andtrying too hard. I told them to relax and that I did not carewhether we lost or won but rather if we played well."
After losing the first two games 30-22 and 30-20, the Jumbosneeded a rally. Sophomore Dana Fleisher, who had sat out the firsttwo games, came in off the bench and provided nine kills to helpthe Jumbos to 30-22, 30-28 and 17-15 victories to clinch thewin.
"[Fleisher] came in right off the bench and brought really goodhitting on the outside," freshman Katie Wysham said.
Thompson saw a different team on the court in those final threegames.
"Our passing and serving stepped up a level," Thompson said."Also the team's energy increased and they started having fun andnot dwelling on past mistakes."
Fellow sophomore Kelli Harrison recorded a Jumbo season high 25kills. She coupled this offense with a strong defense, earning 23digs and two block assists. Even after losing the first two games,Harrison was confident that the team would win.
"Last year, when we played them in the NESCAC Tournament, we wonthe first two and they came back and won the last three," Harrisonsaid. "It was the complete reverse. So, we knew we could do thesame thing to them. Losing was not an option."
Senior setter Rebecca Schaevitz spread her 56 assists around,however, as junior April Gerry recorded nine kills and eightdifferent Jumbos earned multiple kills in the match.
The Jumbos were solid passing the ball, as they committed onlyfive passing errors in the five-game match. Senior co-captainlibero Emily Macy handled 47 of her 50 passing attempts andHarrison was perfect on 24 attempts.
The Jumbos entered the game tied with the Lord Jeffs atop theNESCAC standings. Williams and Middlebury were also undefeatedcoming into the weekend, but Williams defeated Middlebury 30-8,30-20 and 30-17 on Saturday at Williams.
The race is very much undecided, however, as the Jumbos stillhave to beat Hamilton and Middlebury before playing Williams.Williams must subdue Amherst to maintain its perfect record forthis final game.
"We still have Middlebury who has beaten some good teams and haslost to some not so good ones," Harrison said. "So, they're very upand down and we don't know what they'll bring."
Because the tiebreaker for home court advantage in the NESCACTournament is head-to-head matches, the Jumbos could lose to eitherHamilton or Middlebury, and still earn first seed in the tournamentby defeating Williams in the final game.
"Home advantage would be a great thing for our team," Thompsonsaid. "Other than that, this win just proves that this team has alot of fight in them and determination."
Unless the squad earns the right to host the NESCAC Tournament,it will play its last home game of the season tonight at 7 p.m.against Brandeis.
While Tufts will certainly focus on its NESCAC games as the racefor home-court advantage heats up, they now have threenon-conference matches in a row, as they will play in the Hall ofFame Classic this weekend.
The Jumbos won another non-conference match on Oct. 14 overWheaton College.
Tufts defeated the Lyons 3-0 at home. After playing through twoclose games, 30-24 and 30-23, the Jumbos cruised to a 30-12 victoryto clinch the match.
The Jumbos had a big night from the service line, recording 13aces. Freshman Stephanie Viola scored five to lead the way.
Schaevitz had 41 assists as Harrison earned 11 kills andfreshman Kay Lutostanski added 10.
The Jumbos, winners of their last 12, have not lost since Sept.25, when they dropped their third round MIT Invitational match toWellesley. The squad will look to continue its winning streak andstay sharp against the Judges tonight, as they will have a breakfrom NESCAC play until Oct. 29.
