NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Connecticut College volleyball team fell to Middlebury by a 3-0 decision at the Charles B. Luce Fieldhouse on Saturday afternoon. Set scores were 25-17, 25-20, and 25-17.
 
The beginning of the first set was competitive with five ties and three lead changes. But after sophomore Natasha Shrivastava (San Diego, Calif.) set up classmate Emma Wheeler (Meredith, N.H.) for a kill to give the Camels a 6-5 lead, the Panthers rattled off five straight and never trailed again. The margin grew to nine at 21-12 following two straight aces by Britt Lange, and the visitors clinched the set on a Camel serving error.
 
Middlebury (15-1, NESCAC 5-1) scored the first four points of the second set and led from wire-to-wire. The Camels kept things close for most of the frame and only trailed by a 16-15 score after a kill by junior Katie Gunderman (Oakland, Calif.), but the Panthers never surrendered the lead. The visitors tallied five straight points, which was capped by a Gabbie O'Toole service ace, to move ahead 21-15 and clinched the set on a Camel attacking error that dropped out of bounds.
 
The Camels continued to battle in the third set which had ties of 8-8, 9-9, and 10-10 between the teams. However, the hosts could never get over the hump. Following a kill by freshman Katherine Randall which made it 10-all, Middlebury responded with eight straight points to seize control for the remainder of the frame.
 
Maggie Wise registered a double-double with 12 kills and 15 digs to lead the way for Middlebury, which also had five players combine for nine service aces. Corley Doyle contributed 11 kills and three blocks, and O'Toole just missed a double-double with 32 assists and nine digs. Jane Nelson provided 15 digs, four gills, and two aces.
 
Senior Avery Light (Sudbury, Mass.), who was recognized for her contributions to the program prior to the match, finished the game with nine kills while also committing just one error on 27 swings. She also posted four blocks along with junior Annie Wibbelsman (Pacific Palisades, Calif.). Freshman Julia Dailey (Charlottesville, Va.) had 14 digs, and Shrivastava contributed 12 assists, nine digs, and two blocks.
 
Connecticut College (4-7, NESCAC 1-6) will next host Western Connecticut State on Wednesday evening at 6 p.m.