The defending NESCAC Champion Wesleyan volleyball team kicks off postseason play as the four-seed and open with a Quarterfinal round showdown against five-seed Trinity on Saturday at 3 PM from Silloway Gymnasium. The Cardinals (13-10, 7-3 NESCAC) swept the Bantams (19-5, 5-5 NESCAC) back on October 4 in Middletown and look for a repeat performance to open the 2024 NESCAC Tournament.
 
Looking back on that regular season meeting just over a month ago, the Cardinals dominated that showdown offensively, racking up 15 kills in all three sets to win 25-17, 25-20, 25-23. Wesleyan hit at least .263 in every set and finished the night hitting .298. The catalyst on offense was Michelle Jorba '25 who matched her career-high with 17 kills on just 30 attempts, hitting .533 against the Bantams. Jorba's first attack error didn't until the third set as Trinity had no answer.
 
On the defensive end, Wesleyan finished the match +11 in digs compared to Trinity, registering 62 while the Bantams totaled 51. Adrienne Nguyen '28 was outstanding, totaling a match-high 19 digs to go along with six assists playing as the defensive specialist. Morgan Mattson '28 posted 12 digs with five kills while Elliana Moreno '27 had 10 digs.
 
Wesleyan won that match despite finished with just five total blocks as a team, tied for their lowest single-match total on the season. Blocking has been a major strength for the Cardinals all season, as Wesleyan leads the NESCAC by a wide margin in total blocks (109) and blocks per set (2.95) in NESCAC-only play.
 
For the season, Wesleyan ranks third in the NESCAC in hitting percentage (.200) but just 10^th in kills per set (11.48) as the Cardinals lean on their net play for points, heading into Saturday with a league-leading 2.81 blocks per set on the season. The next-closest NESCAC team has 55 less total blocks than Wesleyan's 238.5 on the season.
 
Bianca Gonya '25 leads the NESCAC in hitting percentage, converting at a .344 clip on the year with 119 kills on 270 attempts. Gonya also ranks second in the NESCAC in blocks per set, averaging 1.14 heading into the postseason.
 
Jorba leads the team in kills with 209 on the season, hitting .265 on 525 attempts. Sophie Corbeil '28 has 138 kills in 64 sets played (2.16 kills per set) while Siena Steines '28 has come on late in the year, averaging 2.37 kills per set in NESCAC-only matches. India Clark '28 is hitting .260 in conference matches with 37 kills on 104 attempts.
 
Ali Landa '26 has been the primary setter for the Cardinals this season, heading into the playoffs with 461 assists in 83 sets played. Landa is averaging 5.5 assists per set while her 143 digs ranks third-best on the team.
 
Trinity enters the matchup with a 19-5 record, finishing with a perfect 14-0 mark in non-conference play while the Bantams are 9-1 at home. The 19 wins are tied for the second-most wins in a single-season in program history. The Bantams lead the NESCAC in points (1,501), kills (1,152), assists (1,086), and digs (1,593) while the team is Top 4 in the league in assists per set, total blocks, solo blocks, digs per set, and kills per set.
 
Senior right side Eva Lekovic ranks second in the NESCAC in kills, as the senior has a career-high 318 with a .290 attack percentage. Junior right side Ellie Gordon is fifth in the NESCAC in kills with 236 while junior middle blocker Bella Caffuzzi leads the league in solo blocks (39) and sits second in total blocks (91). Sophomore libero Scarlett Jago leads the NESCAC with 406 digs.
 
The Cardinals are 53-19 all-time against the Bantams, dating back to their first meeting in 1985. Wesleyan has won nine straight meetings against Trinity as the last time the Bantams defeated the Cardinals was back in 2014. These two sides have never met in the NESCAC Tournament.