The volleyball team picked up a key league win with a 3-1 triumph over Conn. College on Tuesday, registering its fifth consecutive win and its 10th in its last 11 games.
The Jumbos are currently 18-5 (5-2 NESCAC) while the Camels dropped to 13-7 overall and 4-2 against conference competition. While still plagued with some inconsistency, the Jumbos took over the match from the start and maintained their edge throughout the entire game as they continued their rise through the NESCAC ranks.
"Overall, we did well," coach Cora Thompson said. "We stepped it up when we had to and got the job done. We still struggled with consistency but controlled the game for better and for worse the whole night."
The Jumbos did indeed start out in control, winning the first game 30-23 before Conn. College rallied to tie the match at one all with a 30-23 win in the second game. Tufts responded much like it has all year, stepping up its level of intensity in tie situations and winning the necessary games, in this case by the score of 30-25 and 30-23 to seal the four-game win.
"Obviously our goal is to win in three, but when we lose one, it encourages us to push that much harder to win," sophomore Kaitlyn O'Reilly.
Senior co-captain Kelli Harrison spearheaded the victory, tallying 16 kills to help lead the team offensively, as well as 22 digs. Harrison's almost automatic contributions on offense and defense throughout the year have been one of the main factors in the Tufts' team's success so far.
"[Harrison] is one of our strongest players," said O'Reilly. "Our coach always refers to her 'refuse-to-lose' attitude. A lot of times, when she wants to win and the game is really close, a lot of people will follow her example."
Junior Katie Wysham supported Harrison in the victory. Wysham, an inside hitter, led the team with 18 kills as well as one solo and five assisted blocks. O'Reilly continued her traditionally stellar play at setter, contributing 47 assists, two aces and seven digs.
The defense and overall team hustle that has been a trademark of this team all year was on display once again. Sophomore Natalie Goldstein accumulated 19 digs, while classmate Maya Ripecky added 25, to go along with a serving ace.
The team is now undefeated in games played during the week, winning all four of its Tuesday matches. This is partially a factor of facing some easier competition, as the majority of their NESCAC games and all of their match-ups against regional power MIT have come on the weekend. However, the team has successfully switched to game-time mentality, a sometimes tricky task given the plethora of academic responsibilities piled on their plate this time of year.
"Midweek matches are tough, especially driving that distance and being in the middle of a mid-term week," Thompson said. "In that sense, I think our team did a great job mentally checking in after getting off of a two-hour van ride to play a competitive Conn. College team. They played us very tough [on Tuesday], and we needed to play focused."
The win had significant implications for the all-important NESCAC standings, as it propelled the Jumbos to a second-place tie with Amherst. Tuesday's win is the result of a season-long improvement by the Jumbos, who started their NESCAC schedule with a surprise loss to Wesleyan back in September. Tufts has moved up from sixth place two weekends ago for an outside chance to earn the top seed in the league tournament and an excellent chance to be in the top three.
Both Amherst and Tufts are trailing Williams, which has amassed a perfect 8-0 record in NESCAC play but has yet to play the Jumbos. The NESCAC rise is evidence of the vastly more consistent and disciplined play that has characterized the Jumbos over their five-game winning streak. Tufts will play Williams at home on Oct. 28 in its last game before the NESCAC Tournament.
This weekend, the Jumbos take a break from league competition to play in the Hall of Fame Tournament, co-hosted by Smith and Mt. Holyoke. The Jumbos begin against Bridgewater State and, with a win, will play the winner of Springfield and Bates. If Tufts emerges out of its bracket, a fourth 2006 match-up with MIT may be looming. It would be the fourth meeting between the two New England rivals, and the Jumbos' chance to even the score; MIT won the first two match-ups before Tufts finally took a 3-2 win on Sept. 30.
Also present in the tournament are Williams and Amherst, and the weekend will give a much better idea of where Tufts stands in the world of New England volleyball.
"This is an awesome opportunity for our team," Thompson said. "It's yet another chance to prove ourselves against the best teams in New England."
