Last Friday, the women’s volleyball team traveled to Williams for a big NESCAC weekend. The Cardinals, who have been struggling lately, continued to have a rough time, going 1-2 over the two days and falling to sixth in the conference.
The Cards opened Friday night with a strong match against Hamilton, winning in straight games. However, Saturday morning the Cards began to have trouble. Facing a Middlebury squad they felt confident they could beat, the Cards let the first two games slip by two points each. Although they fought back hard and dominated the following two, the fifth and deciding game went to Middlebury.
“There really wasn’t any reason for us to lose to them,” said Lisa Drennan ’09. “We should have easily beaten them in three. I think we just didn’t come out ready to play.”
The Cards pulled it together against undefeated Williams despite losing in straight games. The Cardinals had glimpses of their old selves in the Williams match, playing intelligently and efficiently. The team consensus was that although they lost to Williams, they were much happier with how they played.
“The Williams match was some of the best volleyball we’ve played, but we just couldn’t push through,” said Emily Dine ’09. “When we are on, we are scary.”
Drennan put up strong numbers over the course of the weekend, including 52 kills, 35 digs, 14 aces, and 14 blocks in 11 games. She came into the Williams Invitational ranked fourth in the country, with a monstrous 5.59 kills per game.
Setter Ellie Healy ’10 averaged 11.5 assists per game over the weekend while co-captain Tory Molnar ’07 averaged 5.1 digs per game. Co-captain Caroline Rober ’08 led the team with 15 blocks.
The Cards will try to make a strong showing next weekend as they host three games in the NESCAC: Bowdoin, Colby, and Bates. It will be the last chance for the Cards to prove themselves in the NESCAC.
“Hosting the Maine schools on homecoming weekend is going to be great,” said Allison Heaney ’09. “We’re hoping to secure a good spot for the NESCAC tournament and finish our season strong.”
The Cards continued to have trouble on Wednesday, Oct. 18 when they traveled to Eastern Connecticut for a non-conference match against the Warriors. The Cards fell in straight games, but the total point difference between the teams only reached 10.
The Cards continue their non-conference schedule with a trip to Coast Guard on Saturday, Oct. 21, during which they will play both the home team and Roger Williams College.
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