WELLESLEY, Mass. – Wellesley College volleyball was edged by Wentworth Institute of Technology, 3-2, in its 2026 season opener at Dorothy Towne Fieldhouse on Friday night. Wentworth won by scores of 23-25, 25-22, 25-19, 24-26, and 15-10.
The Blue (0-1) received a team best 17 kills from first-year Delia Noel (Telluride, Colo.) in the collegiate debut. Junior Ella Mancuso (North Andover, Mass.) added 11 kills, while Senior Evie Hill (Rocklin, Calif.) was the third Blue player in double figures with 10 kills to go with 11 digs. Senior libero Caroline Meyer (Indianapolis, Ind.) picked up 21 digs. Junior setter Else Kunze-Hoeg (Eagan, Minn.) tied a career-high with 48 assists to go with seven kills, nine digs, six blocks and four aces.
The Leopards (2-1) were led by senior Savannah Morford's (Darien, Ill.) 17 kills. Senior Kate McLane (Columbus, Ohio) was next with 14 kills and senior Emma Sanders (Mount Pleasant, S.C.) contributed 12 kills. First-year Sarah Vaness (Thornton, Colo.) finished with a match-high 24 digs, while junior Clairissa Taylor (Anaheim, Calif.) chipped in with seven blocks. Senior setter Olivia Vaughn (Bolingbrook, Ill.) ran the offense with 39 assists.
After Wellesley took two of the first three points, the Leopards reeled off five straight points in the opening frame. The Blue chipped back and finally evened the scoreline at 15-15 on an ace from Meyer. A 7-2 run from the visitors made it 22-17, before the Blue buckled down at 23-19. Wellesley snatched the final six points of the set, featuring two kills from Noel, one from Hill and a set-winning ace by Kunze-Hoeg.
The second set saw the lead exchanging hands frequently. Wellesley seemed to gain some momentum at 18-14 off of a Mancuso kill and a Wentworth error. However, Wentworth erased the deficit with four of its own points, before dashing out to a 23-20 edge. Up 24-22, the Leopards evened the match up after Wellesley missed an attack long.
The third set featured more back-and-forth shifts, with neither team leading by more than three points at the 18-16 mark in Wentworth's favor. At that point, a 5-0 stretch proved crucial and insurmountable for the hosts, as the Leopards finished off the set with a block by McLane and Taylor.
The Blue refused to go quietly, despite trailing 7-3 in the fourth. A string of attack errors allowed Wellesley to jump back into a 9-9 fourth set, before a trio of aces from Kunze-Hoeg propelled the squad to a 14-11 lead. Wentworth countered by tying the set, and later led by three as late as 22-19. However, a pivotal three points tied the set at 22-22. A kill from Noel and an ace by Hill gave the Blue a set point at 24-23. Wentworth staved off the initial attempt before two errors sent the match to a deciding fifth.
The Leopards sprinted out to a 4-1 advantage in the fifth and never relinquished the lead. Wellesley got the game back to two on multiple occasions but never got back into the 15-10 finale.
Wellesley is back in action tomorrow with games against Stevens Institute of Technology (1:00 PM) and Connecticut College (3:00 PM) at the Brandeis Invitational in Waltham, Mass.
