Cambridge, Mass. — October 24, 2026 — The Springfield College women's volleyball team defeated Williams and Middlebury in the second day of the New England Challenge as Tori Colosimo (Fairport, N.Y.) was named to the All-Tournament Team.
The Pride move to 16-5 overall after defeating the Ephs, 3-2, by set scores of 26-24, 22-25, 23-25, 28-26, 15-11 and the Panthers, 3-1 by set scores of 25-21, 27-25, 12-25, 25-12.
Game 1: Springfield 3, Williams 2
Ahunna James (Plainville, Mass.) filled the box score with 13 kills, eight digs, five blocks and three service aces while Alexa Bonato (Woodbridge, Conn.) had 14 kills in the match. Colosimo notched her 11th double-double of the season with 37 assists, 20 digs, four kills, three service aces and three blocks.
The first set saw a lot of back-and-forth before an attack error from Williams sparked a 6-0 run for Springfield which was highlighted by two straight kills from Bonato before two consecutive service aces from Colosimo to take a 13-8 lead. The Ephs then went on to score six unanswered points of their own to take the lead. Through the rest of the set the teams exchanged points before, while tied at 24, a kill from Sophie Chevalier (Charlton, N.Y.) and an error from the Ephs pushed Springfield to win it, 26-24.
Both teams were tied at nine before a block from Colosimo and Jodi Saelua (Milani, Hawaii) sparked four straight points for Springfield as they took a 13-9 lead. Both teams pushed ahead before Williams went on an 8-1 run after six kills and two service aces to lead, 20-16. At match point for the Ephs, two service aces from James highlighted a 4-0 run but Maya Thompson was able to put the set away with a kill, 25-22.
It was an evenly matched start to the set before a 4-0 run gave Williams an 18-13 lead. Both teams pushed ahead and Springfield looked to get back into the set with four kills from James towards the end but it was not enough as Williams won it, 25-23.
The Ephs took an early six-point lead at 15-9 before Springfield went on an 8-1 run to take the lead, 20-19, highlighted by three big blocks for the Pride. Both teams exchanged multiple points before a kill from Colosimo tied the teams at 26 and an attack error and kill from Bonato gave the Pride the win, 28-26 to force a fifth set.
With Williams leading 9-7, Springfield exploded for six straight points led by three kills from Bonato to take a 13-9 lead. Gabbie Weissgarber (Colorado Springs, Colo.) scored the final two points for the Pride for the 15-11 win.
Game 2: Springfield 3, Middlebury 1
James and Bonato would again lead the Pride offensively as James totaled 12 kills, five digs and two blocks while Bonato had 10 kills and two blocks. Weissgarber had seven kills, four service aces and three blocks. Colosimo notched her 12th double-double of the season with 35 assists and 10 digs while Caroline Burg (Vernon, Conn.) had 11 digs and four service aces.
The first set was evenly matched all the way through as neither team gained a huge lead throughout the set. Springfield gained its greatest lead of the set at 22-18 after scoring three straight points from Middlebury errors. The Panthers looked to chip away but a block from Saelua and James ended the set and gave Springfield the win, 25-21.
Similar to the first set, the second saw a lot of back-and-forth with both programs going on multiple runs. Weissgarber pushed Springfield to a 24-23 lead after notching a kill, an assist and two service aces in a four-point spurt. After Middlebury scored two more points, the Pride scored the final three of the set and a kill from Saelua sealed the win, 27-25.
Middlebury dominated the third set as the Panthers jumped out to a 16-6 lead after going on a 6-0 run. They then continued to push ahead and Natalie Stanford ended the set with a kill, 25-12.
The Pride responded in the fourth set and went on an 11-0 run to take a 17-4 lead highlighted by three kills from Bonato, two blocks from Weissgarber and two service aces from Burg. The Pride continued to extend the lead before back-to-back kills ended the set, 25-12.
Springfield will head to Clark for a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) matchup on Tuesday at 7:00 pm.
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