Volleyball draws second seed in playoffs

Women’s volleyball finished their regular season with a strong showing at Hamilton College this past weekend. The Panthers easily beat the host school 3-0 Friday and took down the Ephs of Williams College 3-1 on Saturday morning. After winning these final two matches, the team heads into the playoffs with an impressive 21-5 record (8-2 in the conference). Middlebury finishes the season ranked second in the NESCAC, with a solid position for the playoffs at first-seeded Amherst this coming weekend. Their second place NESCAC finish is the highest ever for Middlebury.
In the match against Hamilton, the Panthers held their opponents to no more than 19 points in any given set. Jane Handel ’12 and Julia Gibbs ’13 both picked up 11 kills in the match, and the Barrett sisters had another big weekend with Caitlin ’13 getting 19 digs and Lauren ’11 earning 39 assists.
Saturday’s match against Williams was slightly closer than the Hamilton contest, but the Panthers still dominated. After winning the first set 25-15, Middlebury gave up the second set 18-25, but finished strong by winning the third and fourth sets to take the game. First-year Megan Jarchow ’14, who has had a strong rookie season, put up impressive stats both nights, with 10 kills Friday and 13 in the match against Williams.
“We proved this weekend that we’ve become better and more consistent since our mid-season losses,” said Sarah Studwell ’13. “After that showing, I’m really excited about our post-season play.” Teammate Amy Hart ’14 added, “Great moments are born from great opportunity and that’s what we had against Williams. We were all sick and tired of hearing about what a great team the Ephs are. We played our game and came out on top.”
In addition to the two wins picked up this weekend, Middlebury also gained another NESCAC Player of the Week title, with junior co-captain Jane Handel ’12 receiving the honor for the third time this season. Handel’s impressive stats from this weekend’s two matches include a total of 23 kills, 36 digs and 5 aces.
This coming weekend the second-seeded Panthers will participate in the NESCAC playoffs that will be hosted in Amherst, Mass. In the quarterfinals Friday afternoon, Middlebury will go up against seventh-seeded Trinity College. The semifinals will be held Saturday afternoon and the final match is scheduled for Sunday at noon. The Panthers have defeated all of the top contenders in the division during the regular season, and should they come ready to play, they could claim their first NESCAC title in over 10 years.