MEDFORD, MA (November 9, 2024) -- The Tufts University volleyball team erased a pair of one-set deficits against sixth-seed Williams College Saturday night, but in the end the Jumbos were unable to complete the comeback as the Ephs earned a 3-2 win over the Jumbos in the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) quarterfinals inside Cousens Gymnasium.
With the loss, the Jumbos' season ends at 13-11 while posting a 7-3 record within the NESCAC to earn the No. 3 seed in the tournament. Williams will battle top-seed Colby College next Friday evening in Waterville, ME.
Tufts wasn't ever able to get things going offensively against the size of the Ephs (13-10), as the visitors posted 16 total blocks while holding Tufts to just .137 hitting for the match. The Jumbos never led in the first and third sets, but twice powered past Williams in the second and fourth to send the match to a fifth set.
In the fifth stanza, Williams led for the majority of the frame before first-year
Ellery Clark posted an assist to
Emma Heckman and then an ace to tie things at 12. After the timeout, Keely Campuzano posted a kill and then an ace to push the Ephs to within one point of the victory. Tufts staved off elimination on the first match point, but Williams would clinch the match at 15-13 to move on.
First-year
Maiwenn Kamdje finished her outstanding opening campaign as a Jumbo with a team-high 11 kills on 31 attempts, adding five digs, while Heckman added 10 terminations and three blocks.
Claire Castor finished with nine kills, four digs and a career-high eight aces. The eight aces were part of a season-high 18 aces for Tufts, the most in a game since posting 18 against Husson University on September 12, 2014.
Graduate student
Christine Audette finished her career at Tufts with six kills and eight digs, and
Alina Qi came off the bench to post four kills, four aces and five assisted blocks. Junior setter
Ella Norris had four aces and nine assists, while
Rianna Liu also tallied 21 assists and eight digs. First-year libero
Matsa Shi led the Jumbos with 14 digs, and
Emma Norman put down four attacks for Tufts.
Williams was led by Campuzano and her 21 kills, adding eight digs and six assisted blocks, while Annaliese Fricke tallied 13 kills and six total blocks. Chi Obi finished with nine total blocks, and Morgan Daetz also had a double-double of 45 assists and 13 digs in the win.
--JUMBOS--
