The women’s volleyball team (21-6, 8-2 NESCAC) walked away from this past weekend with a mixed bag. First the Polar Bears fell to Middlebury 3-1, eliminating themselves from contention for the NESCAC’s top seed. On Saturday, however, the team bounced back with a 3-0 win over Hamilton, securing the second seed for the upcoming tournament.
On Friday, the Polar Bears travelled to Middlebury to take on the Panthers (17-6, 4-5 NESCAC). Bowdoin surged ahead in the first set with a 10-4 lead, and despite Middlebury cutting the lead to 15-12, Bowdoin came out on top, securing a 25-17 win. In the second set, Middlebury pulled ahead early to claim a 25-18 win over the Polar Bears. In the crucial third set, the two teams battled over the lead, staying within two points of each other until the Panthers gained a 17-14 advantage on their way to a close 25-23 win. Leading by one in the middle of the fourth set, the Panthers went on a 7-0 streak to end the match with a 25-17 win.
Christy Jewett ’16 led the Polar Bears with a total of eight kills. Katie Doherty ’17 and Clare Geyer ’17 followed closely behind with six points each.
Head Coach Karen Corey felt that the team fell short of what was expected of them.
“We played good volleyball but made too many mental errors to beat a strong team,” said Corey, who also cited the team’s inability to block the Panthers’ top attacker as a reason for the loss.
On Saturday, Bowdoin came back from the Middlebury loss to finish their regular season on a high note. The Polar Bears headed to Clinton, New York to face Hamilton (5-17, 1-9 NESCAC) in their final regular season match of the year. The team sealed the victory with set scores of 25-9, 25-16 and 25-17, also securing the second seed behind Williams for the NESCAC tournament. Jewett again led the team with an impressive nine kills and five blocks. Sophia Cornew ’14 added sixteen assists with Doherty contributing ten digs.
This weekend, the Polar Bears will compete in the NESCAC tournament at Williams College. Their first match will be against Trinity College (15-11, 5-5 NESCAC), whom they defeated in regular season play 3-0. According to Jewett, the team has been preparing for this weekend throughout the entire regular season.
“Put simply, we want to win NESCACs,” she said. “It’s going to take intensity and a fighting attitude down to the last point, and we’re keeping that in mind during this week’s practices.”
Jewett also stressed the high level of competition expected this coming weekend.
“Each team in this tournament is very capable of bringing home the championship based on the effort that they put out on the court,” she said. “We are working to be that team that makes the fewest errors, never gives up on a play, and uses all our assets to our advantage.”