Teams: Volleyball: Schedule & Results

TUFTS COMES BACK TO DEFEAT AMHERST IN NESCAC TOURNAMENT SEMI-FINAL
Jumbos in conference championship match for first time since 2005 on Sunday

COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL FINAL SCORE
NESCAC Championship Tournament Semi-final
Tufts 3, Amherst 2 (24-26, 25-20, 15-25, 25-16, 15-8)

At Medford, MA
Saturday, November 7, 2009

Match Statistics

Junior Caitlin Updike's 20 kills helped Tufts reach the NESCAC Championship match

MEDFORD -- The Tufts University Volleyball team defended their top seed on Saturday afternoon and earned a spot in the NESCAC Championship game with a five-set comeback victory over the fifth-seeded Amherst College Lord Jeffs. The Jumbos won by scores of 24-26, 25-20, 15-25, 25-16, and 15-8 en route to their semifinal win.

Tufts (28-3) will face Williams College in the conference championship match on Sunday at noon in Cousens Gym. The Ephs won in three sets over Connecticut College during Saturday's other semi-final. Meanwhile, Amherst finishes its season with a 20-8 mark.

Early hitting mistakes hurt the Jumbos, as they fell behind to a determined Amherst team. The Lord Jeffs' early offense was led by Cristy Meier (San Anselmo, CA) and Jackie Berkley (Fullerton, CA), who opened the match with two kills each, and by two service aces from Callie Neilson (Escondido, CA). The home team was able to get back into the game, tying it at 18, and went on two runs of four points, including a service ace by Caitlin Updike (Manhattan Beach, CA). However, with the help of one of Meier's 13 kills in the match, Amherst secured a first-set victory.

The beginning of the second set showed how closely matched these two teams were, as they exchanged the first nine points of the game. Several kills by sophomore Katherine Kanoff (Pacific Palisades, CA), who had 13 kills and 23 digs in the match, led an Amherst charge. After a Tufts timeout, an Amherst service error sided out for the Jumbos, who took the opportunity to seize momentum. Tufts came roaring back with a 7-1 run, capped by a big block by first-year Brittany Neff (Culver City, CA) to tie the game at 13. Great digs were on display again in the second game, particularly from Tufts sophomore Audrey Kuan (Los Altos, CA) with 24 total, Tufts senior co-captain Dena Feiger (Long Grove, IL) with 17 total, and Amherst junior libero Rachel Yorke (Los Angeles, CA). Yorke led all players with a solid 40 digs on the afternoon. Tufts got five kills each from Updike and junior Dawson Joyce-Mendive (Minden, NV) in the second set, and evened the match with a win. Updike tallied 20 kills on the afternoon, while Joyce-Mendive added 19 of her own.

The third set was dominated by the Lord Jeffs, who again seized the lead and this time did not relinquish it. Berkley and Neilson combined on a block to more than double Amherst's advantage at 15-7, and junior Laura Hyman (Glencoe, IL) added another to put the visitors up by 12 points. Hyman contributed two of her five blocks and multiple kills in the third-set victory, while Neilson continued her consistently strong match, in which she assisted on 50 points for the Lord Jeffs.

Facing elimination, Tufts looked for someone to step up and found it in sophomore Lexi Nicholas (San Diego, CA). In the crucial fourth set, Nichols pitched in four kills and assisted on several blocks, and for the first time the Jumbos had an early lead. Despite tying the game at 10, Amherst could not put the top seed away, and Tufts took control of the game on an ace by Updike (her second of the match), and a great block by Feiger. The Jumbos got four digs from first year Natalie Bruck (Inverness, IL) off the bench as they closed the set on a 7-1 run to force a deciding game five.

The momentum in the match shifted their way, Tufts came out determined in the final set. Junior Erica Lokken (Houston, TX) came off the bench and contributed two blocks and a kill for Tufts as the Jumbos twice doubled their advantage at 8-4 and then 10-5. Meier slammed two kills in the final game for the Lord Jeffs, but Updike, Joyce-Mendive, and Nicholas all had multiple answers for Tufts. Feiger continued to set the ball well, and finished off the match with 47 assists for the victorious Jumbos.

The Jumbos will be playing in the conference championship match for the first time since 2005. Tufts won its lone NESCAC title in 1996.

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