The Bowdoin Women's Volleyball Team returns from this past NESCAC weekend at Middlebury with a Friday victory over Hamilton but two Saturday losses against Williams and Middlebury.
The Polar Bears' weekend opened strongly in their Friday evening match against Hamilton. After a tight but triumphant first set of 30-27, the Bears easily emerged victorious in the second set of the evening at 30-19. Hamilton managed to triumph in an incredibly close third set of 31-29, but Bowdoin returned in the fourth and final face-off with a score of 30-25 to take the match 3-1. Throughout the course of the game, Gillian Page '10 led Bowdoin with 13 kills, 27 digs, and three aces. Captains Margo Linton '08 and Amanda Leahy '08 were similarly influential in Bowdoin's success, contributing a respective 13 kills and 30 assists. First-year defense specialist Grace Lazarus added 24 digs.
The Polar Bears entered their Saturday morning match against Middlebury on an equally strong note, immediately taking the first two sets with the winning set scores of 30-19 and 30-26. However, the Panthers returned in the third set to win 30-27. This third set laid the groundwork for the rest of the game. The fourth set saw the second Panthers victory of the match with a score of 30-24, and in the fifth set the Panthers achieved overall triumph at a very tight 15-13.
However, the match was not a complete loss for Bowdoin, as both Page and Stephanie Drumright '11 posted a team high of 16 kills each. Lazarus added 30 digs, and setters Linton and Jenna Diggs '10 each contributed 31 assists.
Bowdoin's match against Middlebury was only the second in a very successful weekend for the host school, which closed with victories over not only Bowdoin but also Bates and Colby. Middlebury's NESCAC record now stands at 5-1.
Saturday afternoon saw Bowdoin's final match of the weekend with a 3-1 loss against Williams. Williams also currently holds a conference record of 5-1 and an overall record of 17-6. Even against this solid record, Bowdoin was still able to steal the second set of the match from the Lord Jeffs at 30-26.
However, after a first set of 30-21 and a third and fourth of 30-25 and 30-19, the Polar Bears eventually fell to the Jeffs. Page continued to lead the team with 20 kills, while Linton posted 30 assists and Anna Noucas '11 had 27 digs.
These matches bring Bowdoin's NESCAC record to 2-6 and its cumulative record to 14-11.
This weekend, the Polar Bears head to the Hall of Fame Invitational Tournament at Smith College. The Volleyball Hall of Fame was established in 1971 in order to commemorate Holyoke, Massachusetts as the birthplace of volleyball. Since 1987, it has hosted an annual two-day volleyball tournament. Bowdoin, Middlebury, and Williams are each participating this year, in addition to 16 other schools. Bowdoin's exact opponents are yet to be determined.