Once again, this time in Sunday's NESCAC Championship match, the Jumbos were unable to defeat the team that has bested them time and again this season - the Middlebury Panthers.
After upsetting top seed Amherst on Saturday to reach its second straight conference title match, the No. 4 seed volleyball team fell to the Panthers in four sets at Amherst's LeFrak Gymnasium. It was Tufts' third loss to Middlebury this season and will likely be the final chapter of a grueling 2010 campaign.
"Middlebury played super well and a few calls didn't go our way, but both teams battled," junior Cara Spieler said. "We fought hard all the way through."
Tufts had won only one set all season against the Panthers coming into Sunday's second set. After losing the first set, Tufts rebounded by taking the second, 25?21. Middlebury then won the third frame 25?21, moving within one set of the NESCAC title and an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. In the fourth set, Tufts was up 21?17 before the Panthers rallied, eventually earning championship point at 24?23.
With her team desperately needing the point, senior quad?captain Caitlin Updike came up with a huge kill, one of her team?leading 25 on the day. But Middlebury took the next two points - one on a kill from hitter Jane Handel and the final tally on an illegal net touch by the Jumbos - to win the set, and the match, 26?24. The victory was the Panthers' first NESCAC volleyball championship since 1998.
Tufts' season is now likely over, barring the team receiving an at?large bid to the NCAA tournament for the second consecutive year.
The Jumbos' final record of 22?10 may not be as impressive as last season's 31?5 record, but the defining characteristic of this year's group was resilience. It was evident from the beginning of the year. Despite playing without their top hitter from 2009, senior quad?captain Dawson Joyce?Mendive, the Jumbos sprinted out of the gates, at one point winning a NESCAC?record 25 straight sets.
After starting the season 10?2, the team spent three weeks playing only on the road and had to contend with their starting sophomore setter Kendall Lord taking a leave of absence and Updike going down with a fracture in her ankle. But the Jumbos were able to overcome all of this adversity to get within two sets of their ultimate goal: reaching the NCAA tournament.
"We dealt with a lot of adversity this year, but never let it overcome us," Updike said.
"We worked through our challenges and beat Williams every time we played them, and also [top New England team] UMass Boston," Spieler said. "We finished on a high note and are so proud of each other."
Saturday's semi?final win over Amherst - which entered the match ranked No. 1 in New England - was the Jumbos' finest performance all season. Against a Lord Jeffs team that had beaten them twice already in 2010, the Jumbos dominated play, holding Amherst to a paltry .197 hitting percentage on the strength of double?digit digs from junior libero Audrey Kuan, Spieler, Updike and senior quad?captain Nancy Shrodes. The Jumbos won the match in straight sets, 25?15, 25?22, 25?20.
Tufts will graduate quite a bit of talent this year in Updike, Joyce?Mendive, Shrodes and fellow quad?captain Kelly Engelking. But next year's squad will still likely be competitive for a conference title as well, with Spieler and junior Lexi Nicholas anchoring the attack. Lord will benefit from another year of collegiate experience under her belt and Kuan, who is also an online editor for the Daily, will return as the most experienced libero in the league.
"It's kind of surreal to think that they are all graduating," Spieler said. "They all have great presences on and off the court and we'll miss all of them."
This season ended in bittersweet fashion, but the returning Jumbos will use it as motivation to climb back to the top of the NESCAC and New England standings next season.
"I think that they'll be great and coach [Cora Thompson] also has a solid recruiting class coming in," Updike said.
