Earlier in the week, the Firedogs traveled to Keene State College to beat the Owls, bringing their season record to an impressive 9-1.
On Wednesday night, the Firedogs went into the non-league Keene State game with an undefeated 5-0 record. The squad continued its previous pattern, posting a three-game shutout of the Owls, 15-7, 15-1, 15-6. Outside hitter Erica Hewes '02 posted a match-high 16 kills. Hewes' performance was spurred on by her classmate, setter Meredith DeMeules '02, who notched 30 assists. Jessica Allen '04 had seven kills, while Erin Dittus '03 added six.
Head Coach Sue Everden said that although mid-week games can be difficult, especially for younger players, "Keene State was a good way to iron out the kinks in our playing before we went to the [weekend] tournament."
After a one day break from competition on Thursday, the Firedogs returned to action on Friday night, at the MIT Invitational in Boston. "We came into the weekend knowing this was an important tournament and that we needed to play well," said DeMeules.
The team faced Wheaton College first, and defeated them in three games, 15-8, 15-11, 15-10. For the game, DeMeules added another 23 assists to her total of 150 for the weekend, while Dittus helped with 10 kills of her own.
Riding the momentum of the Wheaton win, the squad faced down the Jumbos in a rematch of last weekend's NESCAC Quad, and beat them in 4 games, 9-15, 15-11, 15-9, 15-6. "The game against Tufts was a lot more competitive than the first time we played them," said Hewes. "They seemed really set to try and beat us."
DeMeules added, "Tufts is a good team, so we knew we had to play good volleyball. And we did-our team was pretty fired up and it was a really fun match." DeMeules and Hewes led the way, posting 30 assists and 14 kills for the Firedogs, respectively. Hewes totaled 60 kills on the weekend.
Now 8-0 on their season, the Firedogs went to sleep happy and ready to play the next day. But Saturday would bring the Cardinals and the Firedogs' first defeat of the young season. In a hard-fought match punctuated by mistakes, the Firedogs finally fell to Wesleyan in the fifth game in rally scoring, 12-15, 13-15, 15-7, 15-4, 12-15.
Everden said that much of the final score was a result of her team's serve receive.
"We didn't receive serve very well the first two games, but we came back and won the third and fourth, which says a lot," she said.
DeMeules compared the Wheaton game to the Wesleyan game.
"[Against Wheaton] we passed well and so we were able to mix up the offense," she said. "With no passing [in the Wesleyan game], we couldn't really do anything effective. We really should have beaten them and definitely would have if we played our game."
Hewes noted, "Wesleyan came at us with hard serves and a strong middle attack which we had trouble blocking. By the fifth game I think everyone was feeling pretty wiped out.".
Against the Cardinals, Hewes marked 12 kills, and Dittus followed suit with 10 kills.
"Last year, Wesleyan was a young team," said Everden. "Now they are more seasoned. We have the target on our backs. We have to go into each game emotionally higher than the other team."
The Wesleyan loss, although it will affect the Firedogs' overall record, will not affect the squad's standing in the NESCAC rankings as will the all-important NESCAC Quads, of which there are several this season.
The Firedogs finished the weekend on a high note, beating Western Connecticut State for the second time this season, 15-6, 15-13, 19-17. DeMeules racked up 36 assists, and Hewes and Dittus each added 11 kills, bringing Dittus' total for the weekend to 42.
Everden noted that the return of Emily Ratcliff '03 added a weapon to her team. Ratcliff, who had an impressive freshman season, had been unable to play due to injury. "Emily played well this weekend," said Everden. "We're happy to have her back."
The squad returned home on Tuesday night to claim a 3-1 victory against the Trinity College Bantams. Tomorrow, the Firedogs will host the Mount Holyoke College Lyons in a 7:00 matchup.
In the finale to an arduous week, the team will host the Amherst Invitational Tournament on Saturday, where they will face Coast Guard at 10:00, and Westfield State College at 2:00.
"It was a pretty solid weekend, but we really saw where some of our weaknesses lie," said Hewes. "We have a pretty busy schedule this week, so we'll have a chance to refocus and improve upon the weak spots that hurt us this weekend."