The Colgate women’s club volleyball team traveled to Boston University last weekend to attend their first Northeast Women’s Club Volleyball League (NWCVL) tournament of the year. Led by senior captains Amanda Camelio, Sarah Dotson and Maggie Eldridge, the team played well against some of the best club volleyball teams in the Northeast and finished in eighth place out of 12 teams. The University of Pennsylvania dominated the tournament, finishing in first place, followed by the event’s host, Boston University.

Colgate got off to a slow start, losing both games of their first two matches against Massachusetts (24-26, 23-25) and Connecticut (15-25, 17-25). In both games against UMass, Colgate found itself with what appeared to be a comfortable eight-point lead. Unfortunately, two UMass middle hitters stepped up to overpower Colgate’s defense and help win both games.

The first win of the day for Colgate came in its third match against Buffalo University. Colgate was reenergized after the win and was ready for the Silver Bracket playoffs, which consisted of one-game single-elimination play. Colgate’s offense was finally sparked during the playoffs with strong performances by senior outside hitter Camelio, right side hitter Dotson, and first-year middle hitters Jeanne Castel and Kara Cooperider. Solid defensive play from Eldridge and junior Kaylan Orkis, along with consistent assists from junior Pippa Davidson and first-year Jenny Dorland, helped Colgate win the first two games of the playoffs against Binghamton (25-19) and Syracuse (25-19), advancing the team to finals of the Silver Bracket. First-year middle hitter Lisa Robison and classmate Cara Delaney, a defensive specialist, also contributed solid play throughout the tournament.

Facing Buffalo for the second time, Colgate entered the final match with a tremendous amount of enthusiasm and positive energy. Although it was a very close and exciting match, Colgate fell a few points shy of the win, losing 22-25. After an 11-hour day of challenging matchups, Colgate left Boston with an overall strong finish and an excitement to prepare for the team’s upcoming tournaments.

“I am very proud of everyone’s performance and I think we made a great showing considering the high level of competition from some of the biggest schools in the Northeast,” Dotson said.

The team will play back-to-back NWVCL tournaments on December 4 in Binghamton and December 5 in Ithaca. Also look for a home tournament in the spring!