It was crunch time for the women’s volleyball team this weekend as they went up against the Colby Mules and Bates Bobcats. After a series of close calls and a heart-breaking loss to Colby, the Cardinals finally triumphed, picking up their first conference victory.  The squad is now one victory away from qualifying for the post-season NESCAC championship tournament.

The Cardinals opened this weekend’s play on Friday, Oct. 12 at home against the Colby Mules. Wesleyan started out strong, easily taking the first set at a margin of 25-18. After a rally by Colby, the Cardinals needed to put in a little more effort throughout the second set. But Wesleyan still secured another victorious set, winning with a score of 25-21. The Colby Mules stepped up their game in the third set, however, powering against Wesleyan’s domineering front line to best the Cardinals 14-25. The fourth set again went to the Mules in 13-25. The fifth set proved to be an all-out battle. But despite the Cardinals best efforts, the Mules secured the final victory, winning the final set of the match by a margin of 11-15.

Despite their loss, some individual Cardinal women posted impressive stats against Colby. Defensively, Sofia Davila ’16 led the way with 27 digs, and on the offensive end, Kim Farris ’14 had 16 kills, while juniors Monica Leslie and Kate Centofanti racked up 12 kills apiece.

The following day saw what is arguably the team’s most cohesive and all around well-played effort of the season. Taking on the Bates Bobcats at home, Wesleyan was once again looking to secure its first NESCAC victory of the 2012 season. The first set initially began with a back-and-forth vie for control. At a score of 10-10, however, the Cardinals ultimately broke away from the Bobcats, commencing on a 6-1 run and never relinquishing the lead. The second set proved to be tighter, inching its way up to a 20-20 tie. A well-aimed kill by Laura Volgeneau ’13 spurred the team to a 4-1 run, bringing the score to 24-21, and a decisive kill by Leslie ended the set with a close score of 25-23.

The Cardinals cruised to victory in the third and final set of the match, easily besting the Bobcats 25-6, and ensuring their first NESCAC victory of the season. Standouts for the day included Leslie, who set the team-high with nine kills. Brenna Tharnstrom ’16 racked up 29 assists, while Davila led the way defensively with 29 digs.

“It feels great to finally have a NESCAC win,” said Leslie. “We hope to harness that feeling in all our future matches.”

Also that same day, the team added to its winning streak by defeating Rhode Island College with a final score of 3-1. The match began with some difficulties for Wesleyan, who fell to Rhode Island 14-25.  The second set was closer with a 25-21 victory by the Cardinals. Wesleyan pulled away in the third set, winning easily 25-13 and ensuring its victory in the fourth set by a margin of 25-17.

Tharnstrom once again led the team in assists, racking up an impressive 44 in the match against Rhode Island.  Farris had 16 kills, while Leslie was right behind her with 15 kills of her own. Freshmen seized control defensively, with Davila and Brittany Curran adding 17 digs and 12 digs, respectively.

With this weekend’s victory over Bates, Wesleyan is now officially in the running to qualify for the NESCAC championship tournament. In order for the Cardinals to make it to postseason play, however, they will need a series of wins and losses by various NESCAC teams over the next two weeks. First, the Cardinals need to defeat Hamilton next weekend in their final match of NESCAC play. Bates must also defeat either Trinity or Amherst this weekend, and Colby has to go 0-2 against Amherst and Trinity. If all of these events occur and the stars align, Wesleyan will then merit an eight seed in the tournament.

This Homecoming weekend, the Cardinals will take on three non-conference opponents. On Friday, Oct. 19, the squad will face Southern Vermont University in the Silloway Gym at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 20 will see a doubleheader as the Cardinals take on both Western New England University and Worcester Polytechnic Institute at home.