For the volleyball team, it's goodbye Medford, hello University Heights, Ohio.
Having never advanced past the regional round of play before this season, the 2009 Jumbos are already venturing into new territory as they prepare to take on Hope College today in the NCAA Div. III volleyball national quarterfinals. But for Tufts, it's not yet far enough.
"We're going out there with the intention of winning this match and going on to the Final Four," coach Cora Thompson said. "These girls had such high goals to begin with. Their goal was 30 wins, and here we are at 31 and we're still going."
Facing Hope (33-3), Tufts will be taking on another fresh face on the national scene. After besting Ohio Northern in the Midwest Regional final, the Flying Dutch, like the Jumbos, earned their first-ever Elite Eight appearance.
Enjoying a spectacular season in its own right, Tufts posted a 26-3 regular-season record and finished a perfect 10-0 at home. One of the Jumbos' biggest goals this year was to earn the NESCAC regular season crown and the right to host the conference tournament for the second year in a row. With an 8-2 NESCAC mark, the Jumbos did just that — a feat made especially satisfying by the difficult 11-game road trip that capped off their regular season schedule. After such a long time on the road, Tufts welcomed the return to the Hill.
Though the Jumbos fell to perennial powerhouse Williams in the conference finals, 3-0, they were given a second chance at the Ephs and to play on their home court in the NCAA Regional Tournament. This time, nothing was stopping them.
The Jumbos scorched the opposition en route to a regional title, dropping zero sets as they picked off Maine Maritime, Wellesley and, of course, Williams to earn their berth in the national tournament. While Tufts once hoped to keep its run on the Hill going as long as possible, its latest goal is to extend its road trip for as long as it can.
"It's just an incredible feeling, especially as a senior, to not only get revenge and to beat Williams, but to do something that no other Tufts team has done before," senior co-captain Brogie Helgeson said. "[Winning regionals] made a lot of our dreams come true.
"We were the No. 1 team in New England, which means we should be in the Elite Eight," she continued. "It's amazing not only to have a goal but to obtain that goal and finish strong, which is something we didn't do last year."
Hope took a similar path to Thursday's showdown in Ohio. With a perfect 16-0 conference record, the Flying Dutch soared through the regular season to the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association conference title. The Dutch then powered their way through the first and second rounds of the MIAA Tournament but, like the Jumbos, could not close the deal, falling 3-1 to Calvin in the final.
Hosting the regional tournament a week later, the Flying Dutch then exacted their revenge, sweeping Calvin in the regional semifinals before earning the regional crown with their 3-1 win over Ohio Northern on Saturday.
In the most recent American Volleyball Coaches Association poll, Hope was ranked No. 6 in the nation — and for good reason. The Flying Dutch led their conference in kills, assists, service aces and digs this season. Three of their top players — junior outside hitter Jacie Fielder, senior setter Andrea Helminiak and junior middle blocker Kara VandeGuchte — were named to the NCAA Div. III Great Lakes All-Region team. Helminiak was also the MIAA's MVP.
The biggest threat to the Jumbos will be Fielder, whose 419 kills were by far the best on her team this year, as no other Dutchwoman broke the 300 mark. If the Jumbos can shut down Fielder, they will be in good shape.
"Clearly [Fielder] is their go-to hitter statistically, and that's what the report from other coaches said," Thompson said. "Our challenge is going to be to neutralize her just like we did with [junior] Kate Anderson and Williams. And it helps that we've played Williams five times this year, but great hitters are still going to get their swings in."
Despite the accolades given to Hope, Tufts insists it will not alter its game plan.
"At this point in the season, there's no major changes you want to make as a coach," Thompson said. "We're prepared to go out there and do exactly what we've been doing and stick with what's been working. Now it's more of a mental thing, and our mental toughness is what's gotten us through the season so far."
Getting past Hope is going to be no small task, but the Jumbos have a few weapons of their own. Juniors Dawson Joyce-Mendive and Caitlin Updike both cracked 400 kills for Tufts, while senior co-captain Brogie Helgeson added over 300 herself.
With more kills than any other Jumbo this season and the third-most in the NESCAC, Joyce-Mendive has had a hot hand all year and is coming off an MVP performance in the regional. With Updike and Helgeson rounding out Tufts' offense, the Jumbos — who registered the most kills of any NESCAC team this year — truly are a triple threat.
"It's great that we definitely have such a deep team and that will be a key to our success," Joyce-Mendive said.
"Any statistic is relative to your opponent," Helgeson added. "But one of our strengths is that we have a strong offense in so many different positions; we don't just have one star."
Steering the ship will be this year's NESCAC and New England Women's Volleyball Association Player of the Year: senior co-captain Dena Feiger. The first Jumbo ever to earn the prestigious award, Feiger was the top setter in the NESCAC this year with 11.18 assists per match.
A win would advance the Jumbos to the national semifinal tomorrow against the winner of the match between Washington St. Louis (31-4) and Colorado College (35-4). But win or lose, Ohio is a long way from home, and the Jumbos will be looking to put off their trip back as long as possible.
"The best way to go into a match is coming off a big win like [ours against Williams]," Joyce-Mendive said. "And everyone just played out of their minds last weekend. We just want to keep that going."
