On Saturday, Nov. 2, the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) women’s volleyball team cemented their spot as SCIAC regular season title winners with a sweep of the Redlands Bulldogs.
CMS entered the game with a 13-1 record in the SCIAC as they prepared to face off against Redlands who held a 4-9 SCIAC record. Despite the distance in the teams’ standings, according to libero and defensive specialist Dede Carranza CM ’25, the Athenas treat every match as equally important.
“I think it’s definitely just taking it one game at a time,” Carranza said. “Not overlooking anyone, and just making sure we’re preparing well and taking care of our bodies, showing up to practice with our new perspective.”
The first set started with Redlands taking an early 8-3 lead with kills from several outside hitters. However, CMS quickly responded with setter Georgia McGovern CM ’24 making strategic assists to Brooke McKee CM ’26, Shae Delany CM ’27 and Dani Beder CM ’25 for crucial kills. A ten-point rally saw the Athenas turn the set on its head, going up 18-9, before eventually winning 25-16.
CMS did not let up in the second set thanks to a stream of steady kills from McKee, aces from McGovern and a few key blocks from Beder that kept the Athenas in the lead. CMS was in sync and in rhythm on the court, taking an early 10-5 lead, which soon doubled to 20-8. The set finished at 25-11.
According to Delany, the Athenas’ on-court chemistry and work ethic off the court has helped propel them to success.
“We have a really good team culture that we’ve worked really hard on,” Delany said. “We all love each other, so it’s really fun to play with each other the whole time.”
Refusing to go down without a fight, Redlands fought back in a competitive third set, taking a 5-4 lead with kills from outside hitter Avery Aminoff and aces from middle blocker Makaila Brooks. However, CMS proceeded with another commanding lead with kills from setter Anna Ryan CM ’27 and middle blocker Lauren Parker CM ’25 to complete the sweep with a 25-11 win.
Beder, McKee and Delany led CMS with 12, 10 and seven kills, respectively. Additionally, Bender had kills on her first eleven attacks, finishing 12/17, while McGovern had 36 assists and recorded her 200th career ace.
In a one-sided victory, CMS led Redlands in every statistical category, with more points, kills, aces, blocks, assists and digs, showcasing CMS’ skill, depth and versatility on both sides of the ball. CMS had 46 kills with 10 errors compared to Redlands with 18 kills and 13 errors.
After clinching the regular season title, Solvej Eversoll CM ’27 explained that the team continues to look forward but also wants to focus on enjoying time together on the court.
“We also don’t want to overlook all the small wins,” Eversoll said. “We’ve been trying to just stay in the moment and have fun with every game.”
After this win, CMS is now 19-4 (14-1 SCIAC), and is ranked #12 nationally per the AVCA Coaches Polls. Looking forward, a Sixth Street rivalry match with Pomona-Pitzer (P-P) looms on Friday for CMS, before the SCIAC Tournament on Nov. 14 and 16.
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