On the Court: Weekend Recap of Volleyball’s Matches

Ashley McDermott ’26

Executive Sports Editor

In a crowded weekend of matches, Trinity’s volleyball team faced Connecticut College on Friday, Sept. 26 and the University of Southern Maine (USM) along with UMass Dartmouth in a doubleheader on Saturday, Sept. 27. They finished the weekend 2-1, rounding out their overall record to 9-4 on the season and notching their first conference win.

Trinity swept the Connecticut College Camels in three sets, although each set saw close competition. While the Camels were not able to take the lead from Trinity in the first set, they finished 25-21. In the second set, the Camels were able to nab the lead, but still lost 25-23. The third set saw several lead trades that pushed the set into extra play before Trinity took it 27-25. Maggie Barnes ‘26 and Sarah Jeremias ‘29 combined for almost half of the team’s 46 kills. The team also totaled 69 digs, limiting Conn.’s attacks.

Against USM, the Bantams saw several players hit notable numbers, with Barnes reaching a season-high 13 kills alongside Captain Ellie Gordon ‘26’s 13 kills. In four sets, Trinity outpaced USM in the first, second and final sets, only allowing the Huskies to reach more than 16 points in the third set. Trinity boasted 54 kills to USM’s 29, 51 assists to USM’s 26 and 63 digs to USM’s 42. Catalina Hendricks ‘27 added 27 assists, totaling over half of Trinity’s assists as a team. 

For their final match of the weekend, Trinity lost in five sets to UMass Dartmouth. The Bantams were nearly able to secure the victory after winning their first two sets (the first, decidedly, 25-12, and the second 25-23), but they fell by a combined nine points in the final three sets. The Bantams edged out the Corsairs in kills, assists, blocks and digs, and Scarlett Jago ‘27 was able to nab a season-high 42 digs, bolstering Trinity’s defense despite the loss, Emma Ewart ‘29 recorded her second double-double of the year, notching 13 kills and 11 digs.The Tripod spoke with Gordon, who provided 34 kills on the weekend. Regarding the weekend’s matches, she said, “I am really proud of how the team stepped up this weekend against Connecticut College.” Previously, Trinity had fallen to NESCAC’s Middlebury College and Williams College, but the win against Conn gave them their first NESCAC victory. In terms of the rest of the season, Gordon said “Our win felt like a turning point for us in the NESCAC, and we feel more confident going into our game against Wesleyan this Friday.”  This victory is accompanied with the excitement of Head Coach Jen Bowman being named a 2025 inductee for the Connecticut Volleyball Hall of Fame. This achievement comes within Coach Bowman’s 22nd season with the Bantams. Gordon told the Tripod, “We look forward to working hard and competing at a high level this weekend.” Up next, Trinity faces Wesleyan University at home in the Ray Oosting Gymnasium at 6 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 3.