BRUNSWICK — The Bowdoin College women’s volleyball team heads to Babson Park, Massachusetts, this weekend to play in an NCAA Division III Tournament Regional.
The Polar Bears (27-1) are the top seed in the regional and will face Worcester State in their opening match today at 12:30 p.m.
Bowdoin has enjoyed one the finest seasons in program history, tying the school record of 27 victories, set in 2011. The Polar Bears (27-1) are the lone team in the regional ranked in the American Volleyball Coaches Association poll (No. 23) and their only loss this season was a 3-1 setback to Johnson & Wales, currently ranked second in the nation.
In All-New England Small College Athletic Conference awards handed out by the league this week, Bowdoin players earned both NESCAC Player of the Year (Caroline Flaharty), NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year (Lisa Sheldon). Kate Kiser was named First Team All-NESCAC along with Flaharty and Sheldon while Ashley Williams was named Second Team All-Conference.
Head Coach Erin Cady is in her fourth season at Bowdoin (83-26, .761 winning percentage) and was named NESCAC Coach of the Year last week. She has guided the Polar Bears to two NESCAC Championships and two NCAA Tournament appearances since arriving in Brunswick. In 2015 she led the team to a NESCAC crown and the program’s first-ever NCAA Quarterfinal appearance in her rookie campaign with the Polar Bears.
The Polar Bears are making their fifth NCAA Division III Tournament appearance and have made it out of the first round in each of their previous four tournament showings. Bowdoin has reached the regional final three times, winning the New England region in 2015 at MIT. The Polar Bears are 8-4 all-time in NCAA play.
Currently on a 17-match winning streak, Bowdoin is 7-0 in neutral site matches and 5-0 in five-set matches this season. The Polar Bears are 81-20 in sets played this fall.
Bowdoin vs. Regional Opponents
Worcester State — Bowdoin is 6-0 all-time against Worcester State. Their last meeting came in 2015 (a 3-0 Bowdoin win). The teams have five common opponents this season (Bridgewater State, Salem State, Bates, Middlebury, Brandeis) with Bowdoin going 5-0 and the Lancers going 2-3.
Eastern — The teams have met once, with Eastern taking a 3-0 win over Bowdoin in 2013. Both teams have defeated Scranton this season.
Johns Hopkins — The teams have never met and have no common opponents this year.
Wellesley — The teams have played 22 times with Wellesley holding a 16-6 edge, but the teams have played just four times in last ten years, with Bowdoin winning four of five, including their one meeting this year (3-2 on October 20).
Wentworth — The teams have never faced each other, and have one common opponent – Endicott. Wentworth lost 3-0 while Bowdoin took a 3-1 win against the Gulls.
Mount Saint Vincent — The teams have not played. In their one common opponent, both teams defeated Southern Maine earlier this season.
Babson — Bowdoin holds a 4-2 edge in the all-time series with their last meeting coming in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament, won by Bowdoin 3-1. The teams had seven common opponents in this year’s regular season, with Babson going 3-4 and Bowdoin going 6-1 against those squads. Babson lost matches to Tufts, Williams and Wellesley, all whom the Polar Bears defeated.
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