BRUNSWICK, Me. – Looking to shake off a three-match losing streak, the Wesleyan volleyball team turned in a stellar offensive performance to defeat Bowdoin in four sets (25-17, 25-22, 21-25, 25-17) on Saturday afternoon from Morrell Gymnasium. The win marks the first time Wesleyan (5-4, 1-1 NESCAC) has defeated the Polar Bears (6-3, 0-1 NESCAC) in Brunswick since 2007, snapping an eight-match road losing streak to Bowdoin.
 
Taking on a talented Bowdoin squad that Wesleyan defeated in the NESCAC Semifinal in four sets last season, the Cardinals leaned on experience and coming through in a big way was the senior class, headlined by Lila Sayre '25.
 
Coming into this match with one career double-digit kill match, Sayre came through with a team-leading 15 kills on 31 attempts with just two errors, hitting .419 in the four-set victory. Sayre was joined in double figures by classmate Michelle Jorba '25 (11 kills, .474 attack %) and first-year India Clark '28 (10 kills, .500 attack %) as Wesleyan hit .386 as a team with a season-high 50 kills in the win.
 
Wesleyan took the first set 25-17, using an 8-0 run in the middle of the frame to turn a 9-7 deficit into a 16-9 lead. The Cardinal lead ballooned to 21-11 before Bowdoin made a late rally attempt, using a 6-1 run to cut the deficit to five, but Wesleyan finished the set off with three unanswered points highlighted by blocks from Sayre and Kate Carman G'25.
 
The second set was all-offense as Wesleyan totaled 15 kills with 0 errors on 21 attempts, hitting .714 in the frame. Bowdoin, meanwhile, hit .440 in the set with 15 kills, but couldn't stop the Wesleyan attack as the Cardinals built an 8-5 lead and never trailed in the frame. Sayre was crucial down the stretch, recording kills to put Wesleyan up 23-21, 24-21, and finally the set-clinching kill at 25-22.
 
The Cardinals looked to be on their way to winning the match in a sweep as Wesleyan led 10-7 early but the Polar Bears used a 9-2 run to lead by five before taking the 25-21 win in the third set.
 
Bouncing back from that set loss, Wesleyan responded with another explosive set, registering 16 kills on 27 attempts, hitting .481 in a 25-17 fourth set win to seal the match. The Cardinals again built an early lead at 11-5 and from that point forward, Bowdoin would only get to within four points of Wesleyan as Jorba smashed home the match-clinching kill.
 
Carman, Katelyn Olin '27, and Sayre each finished with three total blocks for the Cardinals who totaled 12 as a team. Adrienne Nguyen '28 tallied 17 digs while Ali Landa '26 totaled 21 assists.
 
The Cardinals are back in action with a trip to Scranton, Pennsylvania for a tournament that includes matches against Scranton, Stevenson, and Haverford on Sept. 27-28.