This weekend's NESCAC Quad competition at Tufts University opened up conference play for the 'Dogs. Amherst got off to a quick start, easily defeating Trinity College in three games (30-20, 30-23, 30-24).
Senior setter Annie Hoeksma engineered the offense, recording every one of Amherst's 32 assists in the match. However, the offensive effort was truly an ensemble. Five players came out of the game with seven or more kills, showing the extreme cohesion of the attack. Sophomore outside hitter Kristin Quinn led with nine kills, three blocks and a serving ace, and senior co-captain outside hitter Nikki Davidson added eight kills. Junior middle hitter Sara Bruggeman added seven kills of her own along with 11 digs. On the defensive side, sophomore libero Mikela Yarawamai contributed another nine digs.
Saturday morning's match against Wesleyan proved to be a bigger challenge, as the Cardinals took the 'Dogs to a taxing five games (30-32, 30-26, 26-30, 30-14, 15-12). Quinn amassed 18 kills, six blocks and three aces though she only played four of the games due to an ankle injury. First-year outside hitter Jaclyn DeMais stepped up with 15 kills and eight digs, as did classmate Berkley with four aces and 19 digs. Davidson also contributed in a big way with 10 kills.
"Early in the match we made a lot of unforced errors, but it is still early in the season and the fact that we were able to come out with a win says a lot about how much success we can have this season," said Quinn.
Later in the day, the Firedogs rallied for an easy victory against the Conn. Camels. The 'Dogs dispensed of the Camels in three easy wins, (30-23, 30-14, 30-24) to end the weekend as the clearly dominant team.
Junior outside hitter Natalie Soud stood out with eight kills, while Bruggeman added seven kills of her own. Berkley bolstered the defense with nine digs, while sophomore Laura Golden chipped in with five digs and two aces.
Perhaps no player contributed as much as Hoeksma over the course of the weekend, as she recorded every single Amherst assist for a total of 109 in addition to 15 kills and five blocks.
Earlier in the week, Amherst easily dispensed of non-conference opponent Keene State in another 3-0 victory (30-23, 30-15, 30-26). Hoeksma led with 35 assists while Quinn tallied 13 kills. Junior outside hitter Kate Raddock came up with nine kills and 12 digs, while DeMais added her own seven digs and nine kills.
The Firedogs' early success and the substantial contributions of the first-years hopefully indicates the 'Dogs will only get better as the season goes on and the team continues to get used to playing together.
This strong opening to NESCAC play leaves Amherst tied for first place in the conference with Tufts and Middlebury and Williams Colleges. Amherst will host the non-conference Amherst Classic this weekend. The 'Dogs play matches on their home court of LeFrak Gymnasium for the first time all season. Amherst faces Muhlenberg College at 5:30 p.m. on Friday and Eastern Connecticut State University at 7:30 p.m. the same night.