MEDFORD, MA (November 8, 2025) -- The No. 23 Tufts University volleyball team was strong from start to finish Saturday evening in Cousens Gymnasium, controlling the action in a 3-0 sweep of visiting Bowdoin College in the 2025 New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) quarterfinals. Tufts won with scores of 25-22, 25-16 and 25-16.
The victory give Tufts its 20th win of the season, while it also pushed the Jumbos into the NESCAC Semifinals at Wesleyan University next Friday evening at 5 p.m. to take on the host and top-seeded Cardinals. Wesleyan defeated Bates Saturday 3-1 in their quarterfinal in Middletown.
The Jumbos (20-5) were rarely in trouble on Saturday evening, as Tufts hit .290 offensively while tallying 46 kills in the victory. Tufts posted a 46-27 edge in terminations, while also edging Bowdoin (14-10) in aces (6-3), digs (51-38) and blocks (4-1). The depth of the offense was on display, as the Jumbos posted five players with five or more kills led by junior outside hitter
Claire Castor and her 13 kills on 31 attempts.
The first set was the most competitive of the match, as it featured eight tie scores and two lead changes. Tufts broke open a 12-12 tie with a 5-1 spurt capped by an
Ellery Clark ace to make it 17-13. Bowdoin punched back with a 6-1 run to regain the lead at 19-18 after a kill by Zoe Ryu, but the Jumbos anchored down with four of the next five points including a dump kill from
Rianna Liu to make it 22-20. Sophomore
Maiwenn Kamdje would hammer down two kills over the last three points for Tufts to help earn the win.
The second and third sets were never in doubt for the Jumbos, hitting .344 in the second stanza with 15 terminations before bettering that with a .345 hitting clip in the third to pull away for the win.
Castor posted five digs to go with her match-high kill total of 13, while Kamdje also was stellar with 10 kills on .348 hitting. Senior Emma Nordman had eight kills and just one error on 14 swings, attacking at a .500 rate, and senior middle
Julia Griffiths had eight kills and three blocks (one solo).
Akpevwe Akpoigbe recorded five kills in the middle for Tufts, and
Emma Heckman picked up five four terminations as well.
Junior setter
Rianna Liu continued her stellar play with another huge game, tallying a double-double of 21 assists and 15 digs.
Matsa Shit had seven digs and an ace, with Clark adding 16 helpers and two service aces.
Amanda Freehill led all players with three aces and nine digs, and libero
Becca DePencier Piñero passed at a sparkling .955 clip in the win on 21 attempts.
Bowdoin was led by the eight kills from Alison Smith and Ryu, whiule Cameron Shelly had 22 assists and four digs. Anna Yeh also had 11 digs for the Polar Bears.
The 20-win season is the fourth in the last six seasons and 12th since 2009 for the Jumbos.
Fourth-seeded Tufts and top-seed Wesleyan will play the early semifinal match next Friday, while No. 2 seed Colby College and No. 3 Williams College will play in the other semifinal at 7:30 p.m. in Silloway Gymnasium.
--JUMBOS--
