WELLESLEY, Mass. – Wellesley College volleyball began its 2024 campaign with a 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-12) victory over Colby-Sawyer College at Dorothy Towne Fieldhouse on Friday night.

Sophomore Kate Giang (Corte Madera, Calif.) led the Blue (1-0) offensively with 20 kills on .417 hitting. First year Else Kunze-Hoeg (Eagan, Minn.) finished with a double-double of 26 assists and 10 digs. Defensively, junior Kaija Kunze-Hoeg (Eagan, Minn.) notched a match best 11 digs. First-year Logan Wilson (Woodside, Calif.) hit .714 to finish with five kills, while first-year Sarah Jin (San Jose, Calif.) contributed eight kills on .294 hitting. 

Senior Ally Majenski (Marshfield, Mass.) paced the Chargers (0-1) with four kills. Senior Brooke Patnode (Weare, N.H.) registered 11 assists, nine digs and three aces. Senior Audra Fontes (Fresno, Calif.) also picked up nine digs. 

The Blue raced out to an 8-1 lead to begin the season. Colby-Sawyer answered with a 5-1 spurt to close the gap to 9-6. The action went back-and-forth for the next several points before Wellesley held a 21-18 advantage. The home team closed the set with four consecutive points on a kill by Jin, two by Giang and an ace by sophomore Evelyn Hill (Rocklin, Calif.).

Wellesley started strong once again in the second to take a 9-6 lead. The Chargers came back to tie the score at 12-12, but the Blue answered with a 4-0 run and never looked back. Wellesley finished the set on a 7-1 run to win 25-16. The team posted 15 kills, eight by Giang, on .387 hitting. 

The start of the third set was close with Wellesley holding a slim 11-9 edge. The Blue turned up the offense and closed the match with a 14-3 run to secure the victory. Wellesley hit .444 in the set with 14 kills.  

The Blue continue a five-game homestand against Rivier University at 6:00 PM on Thursday, September 5. The Chargers compete in a tri-match with Husson University and Babson College on Saturday, August 31.