MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – It was far from easy for the Wesleyan volleyball team on Friday night as the Cardinals saw Hamilton throw everything they could at them, but in the end it was Wesleyan who came out on top in four sets (25-16, 22-25, 25-23, 25-12). Wesleyan (10-5, 4-1 NESCAC) are winners of six of their past seven matches while the Continentals (4-9, 1-5 NESCAC) have lost five of six.
 
After dominating the first set, winning 25-16 in a frame that saw Hamilton record more attack errors (10) than kills (nine), Wesleyan saw the Continentals flick a switch in the second set and knot the set score at one apiece. Hamilton jumped out to a 6-0 lead and led by as many as seven points in the second set, but the Cardinals worked their way back in, ultimately closing to within one point of the lead after a late 5-1 run. Despite the momentum and the home crowd behind them, Wesleyan couldn't make up the early deficit as Hamilton closed out a 25-22 win.
 
The Continentals continued to push, taking the first three points of the third set before later going on a 6-0 run to lead 13-8 at the midway point of the frame. Wesleyan went on to rally, showing their Championship pedigree, and ripped off a 9-2 run to retake the lead at 17-15. Neither side scored more than two consecutive points for the remainder of the set, trading points back-and-forth with the two sides locked in a tie on seven different occasions down the stretch. Just as Michelle Jorba '25 recorded a kill to give the Cardinals a set point, Elliana Moreno '27 hit a service ace to hold off the Hamilton momentum and give Wesleyan a crucial 25-23 third set win.
 
That come-from-behind win in the third set the stage for a dominant showing in the fourth set with Wesleyan forcing Hamilton into 14 attack errors, five of which coming off Cardinal blocks. Hamilton had double the number of attack errors (14) compared to kills (seven) in the frame while the Cardinals hit .225 on the other end, finishing the set with 11 kills and just two attack errors. The score was tied at 9-9 before Wesleyan won 16 of the final 19 points to seal the match victory.
 
Jorba and Morgan Mattson '28 finished with 15 kills each to lead the team. Jorba hit .229 while Mattson hit .200 to go along with 11 digs for her second career double-double. Mattson's 15 kills are a new career-high.
 
Bianca Gonya '25 tied her career-high with nine total blocks (three solo). Sophie Corbeil '28 totaled seven kills and just one error on 28 attempts. Adrienne Nguyen '28 led the back row with 18 digs while Moreno added 14.
 
Ali Landa '26 finished with 28 assists, seven digs, and two kills while Paulina Marino-Bindi '27 recorded 14 assists with eight digs. Playing against her old team, Kate Carman G'25 finished with four kills, hitting .273 in two sets played.
 
Wesleyan shifts their focus to a Saturday afternoon Little Three battle at home against Amherst with the first serve set for 2 PM from Silloway Gym.