(Mateo Kahoun | Contributing Photographer)

After taking down the former No. 7 Trinity University on Saturday, Sept. 19, No.10 WashU volleyball took on their first University Athletic Association (UAA) conference games this weekend against No. 17 Emory University, Brandeis University, and No. 21 New York University (NYU). The Bears left the weekend with a 2-1 UAA record and had a particularly dominant performance against the Emory Eagles — sweeping them for the first time since 2009.

“Our team learned a lot about themselves this past weekend,” Head Coach Vanessa Walby wrote in a statement to Student Life. “They learned a different form of resiliency than they were used to and learned how to compete under high stress situations.”

WashU vs. Emory (3-0)

In their first game of the day, WashU swept Emory in three sets with scores 25-23, 26-24, 25-19. The win brought good spirits, as senior right-side hitter Leah Oyewole attested.

“Any win feels great, especially against an amazing team like Emory,” Oyewole wrote in a statement to StudLife.

Oyewole led the team in kills with 16, followed by sophomore middle blocker Nia Jones and sophomore outside hitter Abby Krause, who both had seven. Senior libero Ellie Laird held down the Bears’ defense with 15 assists. First-year setter Anya Mikhailenko has been a core part of the Bears’ offense, as this matchup marked her eighth-straight game with a double-double.

“We know against a competitive program like Emory that we will need to be extra gritty and be more crafty with our offense,” Walby wrote. “I think we did a great job of working well as a team and it was definitely a team win.”

WashU vs. Brandeis (3-0)

After this milestone performance, the Bears made quick work of the Judges in their second matchup of the day. The match started with some competition for the first set and WashU down 14-18, but the Bears eventually pulled out a 25-21 win after an impressive 7-0 run. 

While Brandeis tried to come back, WashU really took over the match with scores of 25-27 and 25-10 for the remaining two sets. This win is no shocker to the Bears: WashU has beaten the Judges in every meeting since 2007.

“Going into the second match we wanted to keep the same energy that we had leaving the first, and just play our game,” Oyewole wrote. 

After a strong first day of conference play, the Bears had seven sweeps in their 13 games at this point in the season. However, with one game to go, this weekend’s winning streak came to an end.

WashU vs. NYU (2-3)

To finish off their weekend on Sunday, Sept. 27, the Bears played a frustrating five-set match against the NYU Violets, coming up short in the last set 13-15. The game was competitive from the beginning, with momentum swinging back and forth between the two teams. 

The Violets took the first set 17-25, but the Bears came back to take the second and third sets 30-28 and 25-14, respectively. NYU evened the score with a fourth-set win of 17-25, forcing the Bears to a fifth set.  

This fifth set was a battle, with the teams trading off two-point runs until the Violets managed a three-point run to take the lead 10-8. WashU responded with a four-point run to lead 12-10, but in the end, the Bears could not fend off NYU’s attack. 

“I thought our team was pretty aggressive and gritty all weekend, even against NYU,” Walby wrote. “They battled through a lot of situations and held off a lot of set points.”

Despite the disappointing end, the Bears were dominant in all stats including kills, assists, and digs. Mikhailenko added yet another double-double to her record, making 10 matches where she has made at least 10 assists and 10 digs. Oyewole led the attack with 16 kills at net, making a total of 45 kills for her this weekend. It was a big night for Laird as well, as she achieved a career milestone of 1,500 digs on Sunday and was named American Volleyball Coach Association (AVCA) Division III National Player of the Week.

“It is such an honor to be recognized for such an amazing achievement,” Oyewole wrote regarding being AVCA D-III National Player of the Week. “None of it would be possible without the amazing work that our team has put in throughout this season.”

The Bears now sit just under the No. 16 University of Chicago in the UAA standings. The Bears look ahead to their home match against Central College on Saturday, Oct. 3, at which they will be honoring their five seniors.