The women’s volleyball team split a pair of matches against two perennial regional powers to open its season on Saturday, defeating Wellesley College three games to one, but falling to Williams College by the identical score.

The Cardinals took on Wellesley in the first match of the day, marking the teams’ first meeting since 1997. Wesleyan won the first game, 30-23, but the Blue Pride stormed back for a 30-20 win in the second game. The Cardinals eked out a 30-28 win in the third game followed by another narrow triumph in the fourth, 32-30, to secure the 3-1 win. The win was the Cardinals’ first over Wellesley since 1989.

2006 NESCAC Player of the Year Lisa Drennan ’09 had 23 kills and 19 digs, and fellow outside hitter Becca Rodger ’08 added eight kills and 11 digs. Defensive specialist Ruby Hernandez ’11 chipped in 24 digs to lead the team. Wesleyan actually finished with four fewer digs (85) and kills (49) than Wellesley, but the Cardinals made 11 fewer errors and had 11 team blocks to Wellesley’s zero. Wesleyan has now won its opening seven out of the past nine seasons, dating back to 1999.

“Starting the season with a strong win is really important for our team’s confidence,” Drennan said. “We played so well together, and even with the effects of the 95-degree gym, we were able to play hard and beat a nationally ranked team.”

The Cardinals then took on NESCAC and Little Three rival Williams. Entering the contest, the Ephs had won ten straight matches against Wesleyan. Williams slipped by Wesleyan in the first game, 30-28, and followed with a 30-23 triumph to put the Cardinals down 2-0. Wesleyan rebounded to win the third game 30-28, but Williams captured the fourth, 30-23, to secure the match win and run its winning streak over the Cardinals to 11.

Drennan finished with 24 kills and 18 digs, and Rodger added eight kills and 18 digs. Outside hitter Fotini Xenidis ’11 also contributed 13 kills in the losing effort. However, the match provided valuable preparation for the Cards’ October rematch with the Ephs.

“We definitely proved to ourselves that we can beat Williams,” Drennan said. “We lost in four games, but they were all really close. The fact that we had only 30 minutes between [matches] definitely made it hard to pull out another win, given how hot the gym was and how physically tired we all were. Our team is incredibly motivated to play Williams again…[and] we are confident that we will beat them.”

The Cardinals open their NESCAC schedule this weekend with a trip to Waterville, Maine to take on Bates, Bowdoin, and Colby. Colby and Bates have been historically difficult foes for Wesleyan, which holds an all-time record of 10-11 against Colby and 6-25 against Bates. However, the Cardinals have won sixteen straight matches against Bowdoin since losing the inaugural meeting in 1987.

Also, Wesleyan has a combined record of 16-14 (a .533 winning percentage) against the three schools since the NESCAC became a competitive conference in 2000; its record against the rest of the NESCAC over the same time period is 49-33 (.598). The Cardinals also have a 5-7 record in matches played in Maine over that time, including a win against Tufts at Bowdoin in the 2000 NESCAC tournament. In a series in Middletown last season, Wesleyan swept the three schools for the first time, and the Cardinals hope to build off of that success and return to Connecticut atop the conference.

“This weekend is probably the most important weekend of the season,” Drennan said. “Our expectations are to beat all three teams and leave Maine with a 3-0 record in NESCAC play.”

All three weekend matches will be played at Colby. The Cardinals first take on Bates at 8:00 p.m. on Friday. Wesleyan will then battle the hosts on Saturday at 11:00 a.m., followed by the finale against Bowdoin at 1:30 p.m.