The Firedogs faced down the Bantams in Hartford on Oct. 6. Following a nailbiting first game win, 15-13, the Firedogs went on to roll past Trinity, 15-2, 15-2 for the victory. After going four games with Trinity before beating them in a Sept. 26 match at Amherst, the squad was generally happy with its performance. "Our main problem is still maintaining our focus throughout each game and the match," said Erica Hewes '02. "Against Trinity, we had our ups and downs but for the most part we were in control of the match."
On Oct. 7, the Firedogs continued their sweep, making short work of Connecticut College in a 15-3, 15-1, 15-0 domination. For the Firedogs, DeMeules posted 13 assists, spurring on the Amherst attack, led by Erin Dittus '03, who notched six kills.
Finally, the Firedogs found themselves across the net from Wesleyan University, the only team to have handed the Amherst squad a defeat up to that point, a five-game match at the M.I.T. Invitational Tournament in September.
This time, the Firedogs walked off the court smiling, after beating the Cardinals in a three game match, 15-9, 15-9, 15-7. DeMeules added 25 assists and six kills to her total, and Hewes led the attack for the Firedogs with a match high 13 kills.
"It was really satisfying to beat Wesleyan," said Hewes. "We were all looking forward to our rematch with them."
"We showed them how we really play and that we truly are the better team," added DeMeules.
Riding a 16-1 record, the Firedogs entered the NESCAC Quad at Middlebury only to come out dropping two five-game matches to Middlebury College and Williams College.
However, the Amherst squad salvaged the weekend with a win over Hamilton College. "I think we had a good weekend overall," said Head Coach Sue Everden. "It was a little disappointing, but it was a good learning experience."
After losing the first two games to the Panthers, 11-15, 14-16, the Firedogs took the third and fourth games, 15-11 and 15-10. The deciding fifth game went to the Panthers, who edged a 14-16 win over the Firedogs. But the Amherst squad mustered a valiant effort, with DeMeules recording a season high 50 assists, and Hewes marking a career-high 30 kills.
On Saturday morning, the Firedogs faced down their rival Ephs in what would become a four-hour match with five games. After dropping the first game 16-18, the Firedogs took games two and three, 16-14 and 19-17. But Williams came back to tie the match in the fourth game, 12-15. The fifth game also went to the Purple Cows in a 13-15 victory. During the loss, DeMeules posted 54 assists, Hewes had 26 kills, and Emily Ratcliff '03 made her mark with 11 kills for the match. After the two losses, Amherst finished out the weekend on a good note, taking a win from Hamilton in a 15-11, 15-7, 15-9 shellacking.
"We had problems finishing our games, but either match could have gone either way," said Everden. "If this weekend showed us anything, it's that the NESCAC Tournament is up for grabs."
Currently, the Firedogs are locked in a four-way tie for first place in the NESCAC, with Middlebury, Williams and Bates College. DeMeules said, "It's frustrating to know that both of those matches were so close. But in a way, it was a good wake-up call."
"The one good point I think we'll take away from this weekend is that now we know the areas on which we need to improve," added Hewes.
The squad traveled to Westfield State College last night in a match that took place too late for this edition.
This weekend, the Firedogs will jointly host the Hall of Fame Tournament with Smith College and Mount Holyoke College. The Firedogs will open this tournament by playing Bridgewater State College Friday night at 6:00, and then will play either Tufts University or Brandeis University at 8:00.
Everden was excited about her team's prospects for Saturday. "If we win both our matches on Friday, we'll play Wellesley [College, ranked first in the region] on Saturday. That's plenty of motivation."