After polishing off its final two matches against league rivals Wesleyan and Trinity, the volleyball team secured the NESCAC regular-season title and the right to host the NESCAC Tournament with an unblemished 10-0 conference record.
"[Hosting NESCACs] is something I have wanted to do since freshman year," senior Maya Ripecky said. "Since that year we have not reached such a high level, but now we have."
The Jumbos took on Trinity at noon on Saturday, looking to close the books on a record year for the squad. The first two sets were close contests that saw Tufts win by narrow margins of 25-23 and 26-24. The final set, though, was the exclamation point at the end of this chapter of the season, as the Jumbos cruised to a 25-10 win and a 27-2 overall record.
Leading the team offensively was sophomore Dawson Joyce-Mendive with 14 kills.
"We came out and could have dominated all three games," Joyce-Mendive said. "We just wanted to come into NESCACs with everyone scared of us."
Freshman Lexi Nicholas, senior tri-captain Kate Denniston and sophomore Caitlin Updike all got in on the action as well, posting a combined 19 kills. Joyce-Mendive also put up five digs in the dominant win.
The Jumbos' defense was steered by senior tri-captain Natalie Goldstein and Ripecky with 16 and 12 digs, respectively.
The tenser weekend matchup was the Jumbos' Friday night contest against Wesleyan, which held second place in the NESCAC at just one game behind Tufts. The NESCAC regular-season title and the right to host the playoffs both hinged upon the outcome of this game.
"Coming into the weekend, we had to win to host the NESCACs," junior setter Dena Feiger said after posting 45 assists in the match. "It was huge motivation for us. All the records we can break this year are huge motivation too."
The Jumbos seemed to convert that motivation into momentum right away, taking the first two sets by matching scores of 25-22. Showing just how closely matched the teams are, the next set went to Wesleyan by another 25-22 margin.
"Wesleyan did a good job getting the ball over the net," Ripecky said. "But we did a good job too getting where we needed to be."
The Jumbos took the match with a 25-21 win in the fourth set, officially earning the title of NESCAC season champions for the first time in 12 years.
Leading the Jumbos was the combined defensive force of their four seniors -- Goldstein, senior tri-captain Stacy Filocco, Ripecky and Denniston -- who combined for 52 digs and three blocks.
"We have had pretty solid defense all year," Ripecky said. "It is one of our biggest strengths."
At the head of the Jumbos' attack once again was Joyce-Mendive with 18 kills. Updike also tallied 12 kills of her own in her best performance since her recent return to the court after an injury. Nicholas was a two-way force with seven kills and two blocks.
"The defense and back row are playing awesome and getting good passes to Dena," Joyce-Mendive said. "We could not do anything without them."
In their first match of the playoffs on Friday, the Jumbos will host the No. 8-seeded Bates Bobcats, whom they beat 3-1 when the teams met in their only contest of the year in September.
"Being at home is a huge advantage because we are familiar with the surroundings," Feiger said. "As long as we keep our energy level up, we can definitely win this weekend."
With the chance to move onto the NCAA Tournament on the line, all the competitors should have an extra bit of edge this weekend when they square off in Cousens Gymnasium.
"We just need to play our game on our side of the net and not worry about the other team," Joyce-Mendive said.
While the undefeated Jumbos are a statistical favorite based on their dominating regular-season conference performance, they do have the chance of facing the experienced defending champion Williams in the second round if both teams advance.
"Every team is posing a huge threat," Feiger said. "If we continue to play as we have all season ... then we will be able to win this weekend and get into the NCAA [Tournament]."
