After a crushing defeat against Endicott mid−week, the volleyball team was looking for a strong response at the Hall of Fame Tournament at Mt. Holyoke and Smith. What Tufts got was exactly that: after a fairly easy victory on Friday against Westfield St., the Jumbos earned arguably their two most impressive victories of the season over regional powerhouse Springfield and conference foe Williams.
"We went into the weekend off that tough loss wanting to change the way we play, and focus on the mental game," junior setter Kendall Lord said. "We had to change our strategy, not get down in the tough matches and the tough points, and it really paid off this weekend."
The Saturday afternoon victory against Williams was particularly important, because the Jumbos were able to beat their always−competitive conference rival for the second time this season, giving the team a boost of confidence heading into the NESCAC tournament.
Although the win will not count in the conference standings, defeating the No. 10 team in the region in straight sets will certainly serve as a springboard for a Tufts team that was ranked No. 4 in the region by the New England Volleyball Coaches Association prior to the tournament.
"Williams is always one of our biggest rivals, and they have a good team every year," senior tri−captain Cara Spieler said. "It was the last game of the weekend, so both teams were tired, but we were able to act like we weren't tired. We kept up that super high energy, and even when they got close in the third set, we were able to pull it out. We didn't fade, which was awesome to see."
But without question, the biggest game of the weekend for the Jumbos was the Saturday daytime matchup with Springfield. The Pride were ranked No. 20 in the country coming into the game, having lost just one match all season while dropping just 13 sets in the process. Additionally, Springfield had already beaten Tufts once this season, on Sept. 24, so the Jumbos came into the match looking for revenge against a team that consistently ranks among the best in the region.
The match was predictably close, with Tufts winning in four sets while only outscoring the Pride by four points overall. The first set was the key to the match, and after the Jumbos emerged with a 29−27 victory in that frame, they knew that they were in a strong position to even their record against the Pride on the year.
"We've had a lot more playing time since that first match, including some tough losses," Lord said. "But because of that, we've learned what to do in the tough situations, we've learned what we were doing wrong before."
The Jumbos finished the weekend three−for−three, with their Friday victory against Westfield State marking the 11th time this season that they have won in straight sets. The Owls only really threatened in the second set, but the Jumbos rode out the rally, taking the frame 25−23 and seeing out what was a fairly straightforward victory.
"We knew that against Endicott we weren't playing our game," Spieler said. "But we came out this weekend, took control, did all the little things right, and really picked up our play."
The three wins also brought Tufts' win total to 20, the fourth straight season that they have reached that plateau and a tribute to the team's consistency and the steady leadership of coach Cora Thompson.
"Cora's amazing, she really knows how to light a fire under the team, how to put that fire in us," Lord said. "Getting 20 wins really shows the quality of the coaching staff and the great players that she continues to recruit."
The strong weekend could not have come at a better time for Tufts (20−4), which now has just four games remaining on the schedule before the NESCAC tournament, all of which will be played this week. That includes likely their last home game of the year on Wednesday against Emerson, a bittersweet moment for the three seniors on the team — Spieler, Lexi Nicholas and Audrey Kuan, who was named to the All−Tournament. Kuan is also the executive online editor for the Daily.
"Of course it's bittersweet, but it's not too sad because it's been such a good experience and we've played so well," Spieler said. "I'm thankful for everything I've done here, and we're looking forward to NESCACs and the rest of the season, not bumming too much about the last home game."
