WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – The cardiac Cardinals showed true resolve in a thrilling five-set victory (22-25, 25-22, 21-25, 25-23, 15-8) over Williams on Friday night from Chandler Gymnasium. No. 14 ranked Wesleyan (12-1, 5-0 NESCAC) exact a bit of revenge on the Ephs (10-4, 3-3 NESCAC) who beat the Cardinals in a sweep in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament in Middletown last season. This marks the fourth straight win for Wesleyan in Williamstown.
 
Trailing by as many as five points early in the fourth set, Williams maintained their advantage and led by 21-17 and 23-20 margins in the later stages trying to put away Wesleyan in four sets. Needing a response, the Cardinals pulled off some late set magic, rattling off five unanswered points to win the set 25-23 and send the match into a fifth set decider. Sophia Lindus '26 landed two kills, sandwiched by a block, to account for the final three points of the fourth set.
 
Utilizing that momentum, Wesleyan picked the perfect time to turn in one of the better sets for the Cardinals this season as Wesleyan hit .412 on eight kills with one error in 17 attempts in the fifth set. Compare that to Williams' six kills and five errors on 19 attempts (.053) and the Cardinals ran away from the Ephs late. A 6-1 Wesleyan run made it 8-3 and a 3-0 mini run extended the Cardinal advantage to 13-6. Trading the last few, the winning point came on an attack error from Sydney Eyestone, keeping Wesleyan undefeated in NESCAC play this season.

COMEBACK CARDS ??

No. 14 Wesleyan 3, Williams 2 (22-25, 25-22, 21-25, 25-23, 15-8) ??

An epic 4th set comeback (coming back from 23-20 down) was back-ended by a dominant 5th set as the Cards won their 4th straight match against the Ephs in Williamstown ?? pic.twitter.com/gvr2s3fLHw

— Wesleyan Athletics (@wes_athletics) October 7, 2023

 
Lindus racked up 23 kills on 59 attempts to go along with 12 digs as the sophomore posted her second straight double-double and fourth of the season. Michelle Jorba '25 played one of her best individual matches of her career, hitting .476 for the match (11 kills, one error in 21 attempts) which is a new career-high for Jorba against a NESCAC foe. Maya Lopansri '25 put up a season-high 38 assists with nine digs as she handled primary setting duties for most of play.
 
A disappointing start saw Wesleyan hit just .032 with seven kills and six errors on 31 attempts in the first set, while the Ephs racked up 17 kills in the opener. Each team went on a run of at least four unanswered points in the early going before Williams used a 6-1 run to lead 15-10. Wesleyan chipped away before managing to tie the score at 22 apiece after a 5-0 run on the serve of Fiona LaCamera '27 drew the Cardinals level. However, the Ephs took the first set on a 3-0 run with Keely Campuzano recording the set-clinching kill.
 
Wesleyan withstood some early pressure in the second set and held a slim lead until Lopansri capped a 3-0 run with her first of two kills on the night as the Cardinals led 20-17. Williams fought back to tie the score at 21-21, but it was Lindus this time with consecutive kills that build some late-set momentum for the visitors who won 25-22.
 
The Ephs went on a 7-0 run midway through the third set, leading 17-10 when the dust had settled on the scoring run. Wesleyan would get back to within three points of the Ephs but no closer in the remainder of the set before Williams put away a 25-21 win.
 
Another early run saw Williams go up 10-5 in the early going of the fourth set, and leading 21-17 late on. Jorba stymied the Ephs' run with a kill, followed up by back-to-back Lindus kills and suddenly it was 21-20 Williams. The Ephs led 23-20 and looked to have wrestled control of momentum back, but Wesleyan again had a response, closing a 25-23 set win with five unanswered points.
 
The fifth set was controlled throughout by the Cardinals, who hit .412 for the set compared to .053 for the Ephs. Efficiency on offense loomed large as Wesleyan totaled eight kills on 17 attempts while the Ephs struggled, racking up six kills and five errors.
 
The Cardinals posted 11 total blocks for the match, compared to just three for Williams. Kate Long '24 posted six kills and hit .357 in three sets of action. KG Morton '24 led the team with seven total blocks. Bianca Ortiz '24 (16), Elliana Moreno '27 (14), and Lindus (12) all finished with 10+ digs.
 
Wesleyan looks to secure a fifth Little Three title since 2017 as the Cardinals take on Amherst at 2 PM on Saturday.