Wesleyan University

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – All who made their way to Silloway Gym played witness to all that makes the Wesleyan volleyball team special. Resilience, leadership, coaching, togetherness, dedication, and determination are just a few words to describe Saturday's title-winning performance.
 
The top-seeded Cardinals held their nerve in both the first and third sets, combined with a dominating second set performance, to sweep the six-seeded Ephs (25-23, 25-17, 25-22) and win the program's second NESCAC Championship. After going 10-0 in NESCAC matches for the first time in program history this season, the Cardinals rolled in the postseason, sweeping eight-seed Amherst in the quarterfinals before holding off 10-seed Bowdoin in a four-set semifinal win on Friday night, before Saturday's sweep of Williams. Wesleyan is the first team to win a NESCAC title match in a sweep since 2013, while this is the first NESCAC Championship for the Cardinals since 2017.
 
Playing shorthanded without All-American Sophia Lindus '26 and defensive specialist Elliana Moreno '27, the Cardinals rallied around each other and saw the entire lineup step up in the absence of two key rotation players. Bella Ahearn '23 stepped in for Lindus, playing the full rotation throughout all three sets, and finishing with six kills (.313 attack percentage), six digs, three blocks, and two aces. Michelle Jorba '25 racked up a match-high nine kills on 20 attempts while Kathryn Morton '24 was nearly perfect, going 6-for-7 on her attempts (.857) with six blocks. Bianca Gonya '25 recorded six kills and six blocks, dominating in the second set, while Mariko Tanaka '24 tallied five kills including one on the match-clinching point in the third set. Bianca Ortiz '24 continued to lead the Cardinal defense with 14 digs.
 
Just one night removed from watching the Ephs sweep four-seed Tufts, the Cardinals handled Williams throughout, not allowing their opposition to hit over .152 in any set as the Ephs finished .079 for the match. Wesleyan, meanwhile, hit .211 and .346 in the second set alone, as the Cardinal offense showed up, even playing without the NESCAC kills leader in Lindus.
 
The first set was back-and-forth throughout, with Williams taking a 7-4 lead before the Cardinals answered right back with a 3-0 run. The two sides traded points until another 3-0 Wesleyan run gave the Cardinals their first lead of the set. Wesleyan's lead hovered around three points until the Ephs tied the score at 19-19 and later at 22-22. Perhaps affected by the hundreds of Cardinal faithful on-hand, a service error from the Ephs was followed by an attack error that set the Cardinals up with set point. After Williams' Marit Hoyem staved off the set point with a kill, Hoyem couldn't clear the net on her serve and Wesleyan took the first set, 25-23.
 
Wesleyan took complete control of the second set, going on an 8-0 run after the Ephs jumped out to an early 6-4 lead. Later leading 13-10, Wesleyan rattled off another extended run, this time six unanswered points came with two kills each from Morton and Gonya in the run. The Cardinals stretched their lead to double figures at 23-13 before ultimately closing out a 25-17 second set win on a Jorba kill. Wesleyan hit .346 in the second set with 13 kills and just four errors on 26 attempts.
 
Riding the momentum wave, Wesleyan stretched a 7-6 third set lead into a 14-6 advantage as seven unanswered points gave the Cardinals a massive advantage. Later leading 19-11, tension rose as the Ephs recorded four unanswered points and later ripped off a 5-0 run to close what was a 23-17 deficit into just a one-point margin at 23-22. After a timeout, Wesleyan benefitted from an attack error by the Ephs, setting up match point. On the ensuing rally, Maya Lopansri '25 lifted a set to the far side where Tanaka slammed home the set-winning, and match-clinching point.
 
By way of winning the NESCAC Championship, Wesleyan earns the league's automatic bid into the 2023 NCAA Tournament which opens on Thursday, November 16 with Regional Round competitions. The Cardinals learn of their first round opponent and location on Monday at 1 PM on the NCAA Selection Show. This will be the sixth straight NCAA Tournament appearance, and seventh overall, in the Cardinals' team history.