Colby volleyball ended a six-match losing streak with a pair of hard-fought wins during the week of Oct. 3, but then suffered three league losses the following week.

The Mules beat Husson University 3-0 on Wednesday, Oct. 5 before traveling to Williamstown, Mass. on Oct. 8, where they beat New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) foe Hamilton College in an exciting comeback. The team fell to Williams College later that day and lost to Bowdoin College, Amherst College and Middlebury College this past weekend.

The Mules played well at home on Oct. 5 and came out with a win over Husson with set scores of 25-14, 25-16 and 25-15. The Mules ended Husson’s six-match winning streak, and the win boosted confidence and left the team energized for the weekend’s NESCAC games. In accordance with the team’s season goal of full participation, each player contributed to the home win: Sophomore Kate Pleasants served nine aces, junior Emily Varni served three, and junior Maggie Taylor came out with two aces and nine digs on defense. Senior captains Mackie Sewall and Caitlin Burchill had twelve and eight kills, respectively, in the match.

With a new surge of confidence, the Mules headed to Williams for a NESCAC tournament Saturday. Two sets into the morning match against Hamilton, the Mules were down 0-2. Determined as ever, Colby—led by Burchill with 13 kills, four aces and 16 digs—came back for a 3-2 win over their league opponent. Taylor had eleven kills, and Sewall and sophomore Lily Kramlich-Taylor served seven kills each. Varni dug 23 balls on defense and served four aces. Colby came out victorious by a score of 20-25, 21-25, 25-16, 25-20, 16-14.

Taylor described the match as “one of the best I’ve ever played” and expressed her excitement with the win, saying, “our ability to come back like that against Hamilton really shows our mental toughness. I was so proud of the way we played—it was a great feeling to get another NESCAC win.”

Burchill echoed Taylor’s excitement, calling the match an “unbelievable, one of those pinch me, did-that-happen [moments.]” She added, “We just played so well together as a team....I don't think any of us doubted that we were going to win at any point throughout the match.”

The Mules didn’t fair as well later in the afternoon as they took on Williams. “It was tough,” Burchill said of the loss, “we played really well and took a set from them, but things just didn't go our way like they did during the Hamilton match.” The Mules played hard Saturday afternoon, but fell short with set scores of 19-25, 25-20, 25-12 and 25-15.

“As the match progressed, we were just not able to maintain the consistency and offensive power that we had in that first game,” said head coach Candice Parent. “It was unfortunate that we lost to Williams, but I honestly think that if we had not just played a five-set match just before this match, it may have turned out differently.”

The Mules lost to Bowdoin for the second time this season on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 25-12, 25-20, 25-15.

Colby hosted Amherst on Friday night and played exceptionally well, but in the end came up short in a 3-2 loss. Taylor had 15 kills, and Burchill had 13 kills.

On Saturday, Oct. 15 the Mules took on Middlebury at home for another big NESCAC match. Despite their great plays and unwavering energy, the Mules lost 3-0 by a score of 25-20, 25-14, 25-19.

Taylor was the star of the last two sets with 11 kills and a series of blocks that left the Middlebury team scrambling to return the ball. The game was a series of unrelenting, exhausting volleys, and each point scored by the Mules was hard fought and well deserved. Unfortunately, their hard work was not enough to earn them a win against Middlebury. The Mules are 7-11 overall, and hope to take a win in their last home game Wednesday, Oct. 18 at 6:30 PM versus the University of New England.