Last season, the only thing standing in the way of a league title for the volleyball team was a four-time defending champion Williams team. With that Ephs squad weakened by the loss of its trio of All-American seniors, the Jumbos felt 2005 might be their year.
On Sunday, a quartet of Colby seniors showed the young Jumbos that their quest to take control of the NESCAC will have to wait another year. Playing at home, in front of a noisy crowd, the experienced Mules beat Tufts 3-0 to win their first NESCAC championship.
"We really put up a good fight and played well," senior co-captain Courtney Evans said. "We got a little down on ourselves when they scored a few points. I don't think we stayed mentally tough consistently throughout the match."
The win will advance Colby to represent the NESCAC in the NCAA Div. III Tournament, but it does not end the Jumbo's season. Tufts received an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament where they will be seeded second.
While the Mules won each game, the difference between the two teams on the court was marginal. No game was decided by more than three points, as the Mules won 30-28, 30-27 and 30-27. The Jumbos stayed in each game, but it was Colby that found a way to consistently close out games.
"We played hard," coach Cora Thompson said. "I thought it was a great match. All three games could have gone either way."
After falling behind early 9-5 in the opening game, Tufts charged back to tie it at 20 on a Colby service error. The Jumbos went on to take a 25-22 lead in the game and seemed poised to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
At that point, the Jumbos committed a rare subbing error and the Mules were awarded a point.
"We were too pumped up and totally lost our heads and lost our focus," sophomore Katie Wysham said. "It wasn't a big deal, but we just couldn't pull it back together."
The Mules went on an 8-3 run and closed out the 30-28 victory with a kill by senior Caitlin Cleaver, who tallied 15 in the match, two of which were game-winners.
In the second game, Cleaver closed the door on a Tufts comeback with a big spike to win the game 30-27. The Mules took control of that game early, running out to a 22-14 lead. The Jumbos fought back, narrowing the gap to two at 27-25, but could get no closer as Colby finished it with a hard kill by Cleaver.
After falling down 2-0 in the match, the Jumbos took an early lead in the third game before falling behind and eventually dropping a 30-27 decision.
The game was played in front of a large crowd on Colby's home floor, but Wysham dismissed the psych factor as playing a role in the loss.
"It doesn't even make a difference," Wysham said, who led the Jumbo attack with 10 kills in the match. "When you're playing volleyball, you're completely focused. I couldn't even hear the crowd until I got to the bench."
While the crowd may not have affected the Jumbos, it did give the Mules some stimulation to feed from.
"I think it probably gave them more excitement on their side of the net," Evans said.
This was the second consecutive season in which Tufts entered the final game as the second seed, only to be defeated by the top-seeded team.
After their loss the Jumbos' season was at the mercy of the NCAA selection committee. The Jumbos felt they had a good chance, as the number of at-large bids has been expanded to eight and New England is likely to earn one.
"The NCAA Committee has been heard saying that they want to reward longevity, those teams who have stayed on top all year," Thompson said. "I think we've done a good job staying atop the regional rankings all year."
The Committee apparently agreed with Thompson and awarded Tufts the second seed in the Tournament.
"We've done all we can do to put ourselves in the best position possible and our girls should be so proud of that," Thompson said before she knew her team's fate.
Putting itself in the best position included earning a trip to the conference championship match. To get there, Tufts defeated Amherst and Trinity in the first two rounds.
The team opened the tournament with a 3-0 win over Amherst. After starting out the match with a 30-25 game, the Jumbos battled through a tough second game to win 32-30 before closing out the match 30-23. The team hit for a .341 attack percentage, as junior Dana Fleisher and freshman Caitlin Dealy racked up 14 kills each. Senior co-captain April Gerry and Wysham each picked up 10 kills in the match.
Playing in her first postseason game, freshman Kaitlin O'Reilly put up a big effort with 45 assists in the three games.
"Amherst is our rival," Wysham said. "We just wanted to watch them cry and we got to see them cry at the end, which was glorious."
The victory set the Jumbos up for a semifinal match with Trinity, which had upset Middlebury in the first round. The Jumbos got off to a hot start, winning the first game 30-19. In the second game, however, the Bantams evened up the match with a tight 31-29 win. The Jumbos responded with a 30-20 win to take a 2-1 advantage in the match. Trinity would not quit, however, fighting hard in the fourth match to keep its season alive. But Tufts was able to put the match away with a 31-29 win to move to the final round.
Wysham had another strong game with 16 kills and nine blocks. She was aided by Evans who contributed 11 kills and eight blocks. Freshman Natalie Goldstein led a pack of four Jumbos with 23 assists or more by piling up 29. O'Reilly continued to put up big assists numbers with 48, picking up 23 digs in the process.
