Acclaimed fictional coach Ted Lasso once said the happiest animal in the world is a goldfish. Why? Because it has a 10-second memory. The Panthers need to have the memory of a goldfish and keep confidence high following their struggles at the New England Challenge.
Middlebury women’s volleyball dropped three games over the weekend at the tournament, now mired in a seven-game skid as playoffs are rapidly approaching.
The Panthers have had a consistent rotation of seven players throughout the season, and climbed to a seven-game win streak over two weeks in late Sept. Led by setter Campbell Bartley ’28 and her 36 assists, the Panthers dominated Bates 3–0 on Oct. 4 to improve their record to 11–4.
But in the last three weeks, their early season form has disappeared. Starting on Oct. 4 against 25th ranked Tufts, the Panthers have won a mere three sets in seven games.
Playing in the first game of the New England Challenge against Babson College, the Panthers showed some fight. After losing a hard-fought first set 27–25, Middlebury stormed back to build an 11–4 initial lead and win the set 25–14. They then lost the third set, but instead of rolling over, relied on accurate attacks from outside hitter Molly MacDonald ’29 and middle blocker Gabby Pribisich ’27 to take the fourth and force a tiebreaker fifth set. Unfortunately, Middlebury could not finish the job and lost the final set 15–10: their losing streak persisted.
Next up was 16th ranked MIT. Strong play from the Panthers saw them trail by a pair (17–15) midway through the first set, but the Engineers pulled away for a 25–17 win. More of the same followed in the second set. After an MIT service error led to five consecutive Middlebury points, MIT roared back to snag a 25–16 set win. The Engineers completed the sweep with a 25–18 win in the third set.
After stumbling to a string of losses in their first two games, the team entered their third against Springfield still searching for form. Halfway through the first set, it looked like they found it. A kill by Molly Harrison ’27 led the Panthers on a surge that gave them a 16–10 lead. But Springfield’s heads never drooped, rallying off a Middlebury serving error, to win 25–22. Springfield went on to win the second and third sets 25–13 and 25–21 respectively.
“The Panthers need to cut down on service errors and improve [their] returns” Head Coach Sarah Raunecker ’92 said. “We’ll have to work on some different hitting strategy to avoid getting blocked.”
If you looked closely at the sidelines this year, you might have noticed a new face alongside Rauckner on the coaching staff: student-coach Spencer Ralph ’28.5. A former high school volleyball player, Ralph has become a beloved presence on the team
“She is really good at giving inspirational speeches in the huddle,” teammate Lillian Caldwell ’26 said.
This season’s rut is strangely reminiscent of last year. After starting the season strong, Middlebury got swept by the same three teams in the New England Challenge. Then, after sneaking into the playoffs, they lost the first two sets against Bowdoin in the first round.
“Then we ended up turning it around, winning the whole thing, and having the most successful season in program history,” Harrison said. “It just shows that in those clutch moments, our team can pull it out.”
Even amid the slump, the players are staying positive.
“These losses are really good learning experiences…to position us going into the postseason,” Caldwell said.
Most of all, this team needs to remember who they are— champions. Playoff seeding is on the line this weekend as they face Williams and Amherst for Senior Day at home.
“We have sophomores, juniors and seniors who have been [to a NESCAC championship],” Raunecker said. “They can set the tone for us to get back.”
Kanan Clifford '28.5 (he/him) is a Sports Editor.
Kanan is a probable Molecular Biology/Biochemistry major, with additional interests in history and politics. At Middlebury, he sails, is on the board of the South Asian Students Association, and is an avid baker!
