Volleyball in Action. ( Ginger Schulte | Student Life )

As the Washington University volleyball team entered the University Athletic Association (UAA) conference play this past weekend, it searched for consistency. After having an unexpected yet outstanding performance a few weeks ago at the East to West Battle — a tournament held in California bringing in different Division III teams — the team has struggled, losing three of its last four. 

The team’s first UAA action of the year saw WashU play typical foes Case Western Reserve University (CWRU), Brandeis University, and nationally-ranked New York University (NYU). 

The Bears started the weekend playing just like they did in the East to West Battle, quickly sweeping past Case Western and Brandeis in dominant fashion.

Facing off against CWRU, WashU saw familiar faces do a lot of damage as star sophomore Sam Buckley had a match-high 45 assists and outside hitter junior Jasmine Sells recorded yet another double-double in kills and digs — leading the team with her ninth of the year. One of the eight new freshmen also made a massive mark on the game, as libero Ellie Laird recorded 12 assists. 

Although the final score sheet read that WashU swept CWRU, the opposing team came out of the gates firing and had WashU on the ropes. Early on, CWRU had a 14-12 lead, but following a timeout by Head Coach Vanessa Walby, the Bears recomposed and dominated their opponent as they took the lead, 25-23. The second set saw a reversal of scripts, as this time WashU got out to the early lead. The Bears had a 22-16 lead before the Spartans of Case Western cut the lead to 22-21, but the Bears managed to grind it out and ended set two with a 25-23 win. The third set was a gritty affair, as no team was able to pull away, but eventually, WashU just demonstrated that it had the more talented roster and put Case Western away, 25-23. 

Following the dismantling of Case Western, the Bears played Brandeis as WashU looked for its second victory of the day. This affair was a statistical domination by the Bears as they had more kills, assists, and digs than the Judges of Brandeis. 

The same culprits were behind another great team win as Sells had her tenth double-double of the year, whereas Buckley had a match-high 27 assists. Although the final scoreboard showed that WashU easily defeated Brandeis, the game was a back-and-forth affair. The first set saw the Bears trailing 15-10, but they were able to fight back, tying the game at 17-17, and then finally taking over and finishing the first set with a 25-20 advantage. 

The second set was back and forth, as the Bears had a slim lead of 14-13, but after an 11-4 run, they finished the second set with a 25-17 advantage. As the Bears had their eyes on their second sweep of the day, Brandeis had different plans as they started the third set with an early 8-5 lead. Like the previous two, this set would become a back-and-forth affair, but again, the Bears hit a completely different level and took a 23-16 advantage. They finished the final set victorious, 25-17. 

The Bears finished this set of games playing tenth-ranked NYU before they head back home. In a contested match-up, the Bears lost to NYU in four sets, winning just one. The Bears would finish the weekend with a record of 10-5 for the season, going 2-1 in UAA conference play.