Hosting the Bears Classic this past weekend at the Field House, the seniors on the Washington University volleyball team were determined to help their squad maintain its perfect season. The Bears moved to 19-0 overall record with three wins this weekend and proved that the pollsters were correct for the upcoming week, unanimously voting the Bears as the No. 1-ranked team in the nation.

The Bears opened up play this weekend against Westminster College. Making quick work of the Blue Jays, the Bears won in three straight games (30-9, 30-6, 30-12). While it was the seniors’ weekend to shine, freshmen Nikki Morrison and Alli Alberts led the offense for the Bears with nine kills apiece. Junior Megan Delcourt, the only Bear to play in all three of the games against Westminster, tallied 20 assists with a hitting percentage of 1.000 (3 kills, 3 attempts, 0 errors).

Steadfast in consistency and quality in one game of play, the seniors still made huge contributions. Senior Megan Houck had seven kills (on eight attempts with no errors, for a percentage of .875), and senior setter Kara Liefer had two kills with nine assists. As a team, the Bears hit .519 and matched a season-high of 16 service aces.

Continuing their play on Friday, the Bears faced University of Wisconsin-Lacrosse in a rematch of last year’s NCAA quarterfinal game. Again, the opponent did not provide any challenge for the Bears as they rolled to a 3-0 victory (30-10, 30-16, 30-24). With another balanced attack that included four players with a hitting percentage over .500, the Bears tallied 51 kills. Junior Whitney Smith and Houck dominated again with 11 kills, while sophomore Haleigh Spencer added eight kills of her own. Liefer had an astonishing 40 assists to go along with her four kills.

Saturday’s opponents were equally flattened by the Bears, who beat Baldwin-Wallace College 3-0 (30-20, 30-21, 30-21) and Fontbonne University 3-1 (30-14, 30-22, 27-30, 30-16). Against Baldwin-Wallace, the Bears had six players with at least five kills. Sophomore Emilie Walk had 15 kills and Smith added 12. Defensively, junior libero Amy Bommarito had a season-high 24 digs. Spencer was an all-around asset, as she contributed six kills, four assists and 19 digs.

Cross-Wydown rival Fontbonne University was the only team able to take even one game from the Bears this weekend. Still, the Bears’ offense included three players with double-digit kills, two players with double-digit assists and a total of 13 service aces. Liefer, Smith, Houck and Bommarito, the all-tournament selections from Wash. U., proved their worth, responsible for 23 kills, 37 assists, 24 digs and six service aces-more than half of the team’s offense and defense.

However, the focus could not be shifted from the three seniors Houck, Liefer, and Nicole Hodgman. The senior trio accounted for a combined 52 kills, 130 assists, 30 digs and 12 service aces this weekend. This is not unusual, as these three have been the anchor of the Bears all season while collecting several all-tournament team nominations.

The Bears return to action at the Field House at 10 a.m. this Sat., Oct. 15, in the second University Athletic Association (UAA) round-robin against opponents University of Rochester, Case Western Reserve University, New York University and Emory University.

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