HARTFORD, Conn. - The Trinity College Bantams closed out the 2022 regular season with a 3-1 loss to the visiting Middlebury College Panthers in New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) volleyball action this afternoon on Ogrodnik Court in Oosting Gymnasium.  The Bantams finish at 9-13 overall and 4-6 in the NESCAC and Middlebury finishes at 14-9 overall and 5-5 in the league.  Both teams qualified for the NESCAC Championship Tournament at Wesleyan next weekend.  On Friday, Trinity will play Tufts at 5 p.m. and Middlebury plays Williams at 7:30 p.m. 

Middlebury won the first set, 25-20, scoring four of the final five points.  Trinity used a 6-0 run, including two kills by senior co-captain Molly Bernstein (Oakland, Calif.) and two aces by sophomore Kaila Dowd (Kennesaw, Ga.), to pull away in the middle of the second set for a 25-18 victory.  Middlebury controlled the third set, winning, 25-12, and used a 6-0 run to turn a 15-12 deficit into an 18-15 lead on their way to a match-clinching, 25-19, win in the fourth.  Bantam sophomore OH Ava Boloyan (American Canyon, Calif.) had a team-high 12 kills, while sophomore Eva Lekovic (San Marino, Calif.) had 11, and junior co-captain Lola Craig (Los Angeles, Calif.) added 10 kills.  Rookie S Caroline Howell (Houston, Texas) notched 25 assists, three aces, and 10 digs and sophomore L Julia Torre (Cape Elizabeth, Maine) added 15 digs for the Bantams. Gabbie O'Toole recorded seven kills, 30 assists, three aces, and six digs for Middlebury.