Ephs down Little 3 rival Wesleyan

NEW LONDON, CT-  The Williams College women’s volleyball team (22-7, 7-1) notched its second consecutive conference victory Friday night on the opening day of the final NESCAC weekend, hosted by Connecticut College.  The Ephs, coming off a home win over Middlebury, defeated Little 3 rival Wesleyan 3-0 (30-25, 30-19, 30-22).

“We were very consistent tonight, probably the most consistent we’ve been in a while,” said head coach Fran Vandermeer.  “We played well against a strong Wesleyan team.”

The win marks the beginning of three conference matches this weekend for the Ephs, who look to end the regular season on a winning note, and prepare for next weekend’s NESCAC championship tournament.

On the night, the Ephs were led by sophomores Alisha Cahlan and Melissa Pun.  Cahlan smashed a team high 16 kills to go along with 3 blocks while Pun had a balanced attack that featured 14 digs and 9 kills.  First years Emily Avis and Nicole Ballon-Landa were also big contributors in the decisive victory.  Avis posted an impressive 5 service aces and 29 assists, while Ballon-Landa tallied 5 kills and 5 blocks.

A story this year for has been the height advantage, something the Ephs haven’t had in previous season, and it was on full display against Wesleyan.

“The blocking was consistent and we played good defense around our block,” said Vandermeer.  

The stellar defense was led by junior captain Riki McDermott (11 digs), sophomore Chelsea Kubal (14 digs), and first year Eleanor Levine (12 digs, 5 kills), all of whom posted good numbers.      

The Ephs now conclude regular season action tomorrow with two matches against host Conn. College (11:00 AM) and Trinity (1:30 PM).