The Firedogs fell to the Purple Cows in three straight games, losing by scores of 12-30, 25-30 and 18-30. Williams is only the third team of the season to sweep Amherst. The Williams defense held Amherst to a team total of only 26 kills, seven of which came at the hands of outside hitter Jess Allen '04. Middle hitter Sara Bruggeman '06 and middle hitter Lauren Wong '04 also paced the Firedogs with five kills each. Despite this setback, the Firedogs believe that Williams is beatable in the event of a late-round NESCAC match-up. "I feel like if we play our game, we'll do very well, and should have a good shot at beating all the teams we play, especially Williams," said Bruggeman.
Co-captain setter Missy Mordy '03 agreed with her teammate. "If we're playing together and really concentrate on teamwork, we can beat Williams," she said. "It is just a matter of coming out strong and finishing-oftentimes, our team has difficulties toward the middle of the game. [We need to continue] to push for those middle points and the last few points to seal off the game."
This problem plagued Amherst in the second match of the day against Wesleyan. However, the Firedogs proved their mettle by overcoming these setbacks.
The Firedogs ultimately defeated the Cardinals in five games 30-28, 16-30, 20-30, 30-24 and 15-13. Allen again led the Firedogs with 16 kills, followed by Bruggeman with 10 kills and eight blocks. Co-captain outside hitter Erin Dittus '03 added another eight kills to solidify the offense. Setter Annie Hoeksma '05 also played well offensively with 37 assists. On defense, setter Irene Lee '03 and Hoeksma had 10 digs apiece. Mordy chipped in with five more. Outside hitter Lauren Wong '04 also helped out on defense with 11 blocks.
Following a season-long trend, no one Amherst player dominated. Instead, the consistency of the team as a whole contributed to the victory. Five different Amherst players had over five kills and eight players added to the defense with digs. The win against Wesleyan pulled Amherst out of a three game slide, the team's first losing streak all season. However, the ability of the team to pull out a tough win after facing adversity bodes well for the Tournament. This Friday, the Firedogs travel to Williamstown once again for the NESCAC Tournament. In the first round, the third-seeded Amherst squad faces off against Tufts University at 6:00 p.m. Semifinal and final play takes place on Saturday, with the winner receiving a bid to the NCAA Tournament on Nov. 14-16. In the event of both teams advancing, Amherst will not face Williams again until the finals.