Volleyball Goes 3-1, Notches Victories over Trio of Nonconference Foes

The women’s volleyball team capped off its six-game home stand with two wins and a loss at the Hall of Fame Invitational Tournament, hosted at LeFrak Gymnasium, and a victory over the Coast Guard Academy. On Friday, Oct. 19, Amherst honored co-captains Hayes Honea ’19 and Lauren Reppert ’19 as part of its Senior Night ceremony, but ultimately dropped the first match of the tournament to Wellesley College in straight sets.

On Saturday, Oct. 20, the Firedogs rallied, posting back-to-back 3-0 victories over Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and Bridgewater State University.

Amherst now boasts an impressive 18-4 record heading into the last week of regular season play.

The Wellesley College Blue entered the match with a 15-4 record and dominated from the opening whistle.

In the first set, Amherst struggled to gain any offensive momentum, allowing 10 straight points to lose 25-10. In the second, Amherst could not stop several runs from Wellesley and quickly lost control of the set, ultimately falling 25-12.

The third set was the most competitive of the night, as Amherst even managed to hold an 18-15 lead. However, a four-point run put the Blue ahead for good, and the Firedogs dropped the set 25-21. In the defeat, Jamie Dailey ’21 led Amherst with eight kills, while fellow sophomore Daria Kim-Percy contributed six kills and eight digs.

Charlotte Duran ’20 finished with 15 assists and Honea posted two service aces and three digs.

The second match of the tournament for the Firedogs was against the WPI Engineers. This time, in stark contrast to the previous night’s loss, Amherst was dominant from the start. The first set was tied early at five points apiece, but an offensive explosion from the Firedogs led to a 25-14 set win.

The second set featured complete team play, as Amherst received contributions from Dailey, Cam Hendricks ’20, Claire Dennis ’20 and Emily Kolsky ’20 as they cruised to a 25-12 set win.

It only took one more set to finish the match, with Amherst winning 25-13 in the third.

Hendricks led the team in the win with 13 kills, Honea and Skyleur Savage ’22 each had 11 digs and Duran tallied 38 assists.

The second match of the day for Amherst was against the Bridgewater State Bears, who entered with a 4-13 record.

In the first set, Amherst scored 15 straight points to take the set 25-5, while the Firedogs maintained a comfortable lead to win 25-17.

In the final frame, Amherst once led throughout the entirety of the set, winning 25-15.

Kolsky and Savage dominated the Bears, posting 15 kills and 11 digs, respectively. Adelaide Shunk ’20 paced the team with 23 assists and Reppert contributed four kills. For her impressive performances over the weekend, Kolsky was named to the all-tournament team.

On Tuesday, Oct. 23, the Firedogs traveled to Coast Guard Academy to take on the Bears.

The Firedogs started strong, taking the first four points of the first set. The Bears, however, made headway and managed to cut the Mammoths’ lead to 15-14.

Amherst would go on to register a 6-2 run, before Coast Guard made another comeback. The set would end tensely, as Amherst scored the last two points to take the set, 25-22.

The Bears battled back in the second set, wining the first five points, and Amherst could never close the gap. Down 14-17, Amherst took a timeout to reorganize, and scored twice out of that timeout to narrow Coast Guard’s lead to one.

The Bears, however, did not relinquish the lead, and proceeded to go on a five point run to bring the score to 15-23.

This deficit was too much for the Mammoths to overcome, and the Bears took the set 25-20.

Tied at one set apiece, the Mammoths began to dominate. The third set saw the two squads tied at 16-16, but Amherst went on a 7-2 run after a kill by Dennis.

The Mammoths would go on to claim the set, 25-22.

The fourth set would be less contentious, as the Mammoths won 25-11. Amherst claimed the victory, taking the match, three sets to one.

Dailey and Kolsky led the team in kills with 15 kills each.

Duran would end the match with a spectacular 42 assists, and Honea and Savage led the team with nine digs each.

Kolsky would record eight digs, while only commiting four errors throughout the match.

On Friday, Oct 26, Amherst will head to Lewiston, Maine to take on Bates at 7 p.m before ending regular season play on Saturday, Oct. 27 against Colby.