Following the first week of classes, Colby women’s volleyball traveled south for a tournament at Emory University. The East-West Classic is an annual tournament hosted by Emory University in Atlanta, GA. This year had five teams participate: Emory University, Washington University in St. Louis, Eastern Texas Baptist University, Claremont Mudd-Scripps College, and Colby College. Each team played three games over the course of Sept. 11–12.
The Mules must have had a lot of pressure on their backs. Last year they had a historic season where they finished with a 26–4 record, won NCAA Regionals, and made it to the Division III Elite 8. This opening tournament was a good chance to prove that the Mules had not lost steam, and they took that challenge in stride.
Colby started out with a game against Washington University in St. Louis. It was a competitive first match for the Mules, going through all five available sets. Colby won the first set 25–20, then lost the second one 26–24. WashU then won again in the third set 25–20. This meant Colby had to win the next set to keep the match alive, and luckily they did not disappoint. The fourth set was decisive, with Colby coming out 25–11 against the Bears. The fifth set is first to 15, rather than 25, and Colby scored 15 to WashU’s 13, winning the match 3–2.
The team’s second game was more competitive, but the Mules still came out on top. Claremont Mudd-Scripps was able to score 23 to Colby’s 25 in the first set, then came back aggressively in the second, putting up 25 compared to Colby’s 16. The Mules did not let this faze them, winning the third set 25–18 and the fourth 25–19, ultimately taking the match 3–1.
The third and final game was a win over the hosts, Emory University. In the first set, it was a close 25–22. The second set ended with the same score, 25–22 for Colby, putting the Mules up 2–0 in the best-of-five series. The final set was cleaner, especially thanks to a whopping seven kills by outside hitter Brianna Hazak `29, who ended up being the NESCAC women’s volleyball player of the week of Sept. 14.
This past weekend, the volleyball team played two NESCAC matches. They defeated Trinity College on Friday, September 8th 3–1, and Connecticut College on Saturday, Sept. 18 3–0. Combine this with a Wednesday night win 3–0 over Maine Maritime Academy, and Colby women’s volleyball has a perfect 6–0 record.
Be sure to catch Colby women’s volleyball as they hopefully continue their winning streak. They play on Friday night at Bowdoin in a classic NESCAC rivalry game, with a home game to follow on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. against the University of New England. Good luck, and go Mules!
~ Meredith McKeever `29
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