The volleyball team remains undefeated after winning each of its three matches this past week, extending its winning streak to six games. The Firedogs won their home opener, beating Keene State University in three straight games on Wednesday evening and grabbed a pair of NESCAC wins, outclassing both Hamilton and Middlebury Colleges at Tufts University over the weekend. The team is happy thus far with its progress and already sees development and improvement.
"[Two weeks ago] was our first week of regular season competition, so we had a few small things to work out on the court," said senior tri-captain Whitney Kouvaris. "After only a week more of practice together, we definitely improved in every aspect and played really well together as a team."
The Firedogs looked hungry in their first game against Keene State, jumping out to an early 18-7 lead. They fended off the Owls' counterattack, winning the game 30-22. The team was tested in the next two games as Keene State kept it close, losing by only five points and four points respectively in the second and third games. Tri-captain Julie Berkley '08 anchored the defense along with Bethany Belisle '10, and Rachel Yorke '11, all three of whom registered 10 digs while tri-captain Jaclyn DeMais '08 and junior Claire Holton-Basaldua sparked the offense, slamming home a combined 21 kills.
Still feeling good from Wednesday's win, the team headed off to Tufts to turn up the heat against Hamilton, its first NESCAC opponent of the year.
"NESCAC standings are important for the conference tournament in November, so we wanted to come out strong and make a statement this first weekend," said Kouvaris. "Our conference matches are the most important games during our regular season, so the atmosphere in the gym is more intense and in turn, much more fun."
Once again the Firedogs jumped out to an early lead in their first game and dismantled Hamilton's defense, winning the game 30-12. In the second game, Amherst appeared to lose its focus and allowed the opposition to take the game by a score of 30-22. The Firedogs regained their composure, winning the third game 30-28 and the fourth 30-22 to tally their first NESCAC win of the season. Berkley owned the defense with 15 digs and setter Sara Heller '09 set up the offense with a total of 50 assists.
The team faltered in the first game of the match against Middlebury, losing the opening game for the first time this season, by a score of 27-30. With the momentum all on Middlebury's side, the Firedogs struggled to stay in the match.
"After losing the first game to Middlebury, we knew we had the talent to beat them and we were motivated to play harder in the second game than we had in the first," said Kouvaris.
Amherst had to fight hard in order to win the second game, barely edging out the opposition 30-28. The Firedogs dominated the third game, winning 30-13 and took the fourth in a convincing 30-24 win. Defensive specialist Rachel Yorke '11 showed her skill, amassing 29 digs, while DeMais put away 23 kills and Heller dished 60 assists.
"The end of the second game was a real turning point for us," said Kouvaris. "We were down by a large amount during the entire game but came back at the very end for a phenomenal win that gave us momentum for the third game."
The veterans of the team continue to be impressed by the first years and consistently attribute their cohesiveness on the court to the team's bond off the court.
"All of the first-years are great and positive additions to the team. We like to foster a really tight-knit community on the volleyball team since it's their first couple of months at college and on a new team," said Munzer. "I really believe that our team eases the fears and reduces the stress our first-years would otherwise feel because they know they have a bunch of upperclassmen looking out for them."
After the key NESCAC wins, the Jeffs traveled to Boston to play Emerson College on Tuesday night. Once again, the Firedogs were dominant en route to a 3-0 sweep over the Lions.
Amherst sent the tone early, winning the first game by a 30-17 score. With a quick 1-0 lead, the Firedogs never looked back, taking the next two games by a 30-20 and 30-23 score. DeMais led Amherst with kills in the match, compiling a total of 14 on the night. DeMais now has a total of 112 kills on the season, good for the team lead. Kouvaris and sophomore '09 Hannah Wirth are second and third on the team, respectively.
With the win the Firedogs have now started the season by winning their first seven games, two of which have come in conference play. Although the Jeffs would love an undefeated season, there is still much volleyball to be played. The Jeffs still have to face other NESCAC powerhouses such as Williams College, Connecticut College and Wesleyan University.
But first the Firedogs have other matches to concentrate on. They return to Amherst to play a quartet of home games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday against Brandeis, Westfield State, Johnson and Wales University and Middlebury.