Box Score MEDFORD, Mass. – The Trinity College volleyball team fell to host Tufts University, 3-0 (19-25, 18-25, 15-25), in their New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) season opener Saturday afternoon. The Bantams dip to 4-3 on the season, and 0-1 in conference play, while the Jumbos improve to 1-1 in the NESCAC and 3-3 overall.

In the first set, the Bantams grabbed a 5-1 lead behind kills from junior Bella Caffuzzi (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and junior Eva Lekovic (San Marino, Calif.). Trinity maintained their advantage with strikes from senior Lola Craig (Los Angeles, Calif.), sophomore Ellie Gordon (The Villages, Fla.), and junior Ava Boloyan (American Canyon, Calif.) to hold a 12-10 lead. The sides continued to exchange points as a pair of kills from Gordon helped the Bantams hold a 17-16 edge. Following a kill from Caffuzzi, the Jumbos scored seven straight points behind a pair of kills from senior Rileigh Farragher (Evanston, Ill.) and junior Alina Qi (San Francisco, Calif.) to take the first set, 25-19.

Trinity captured an early 5-1 lead after a pair of kills from Lekovic. The Bantams maintained the lead with two kills from Boloyan, and then Gordon added two more tallies along with a strike from Lekovic to keep a 13-10 advantage. Tufts grabbed their first lead with a 5-0 run to move ahead 15-13. Lekovic brought the Bantams within a point at 16-15, but Tufts rattles off another 6-0 run to pull away 22-15. Senior Margaret McCarthy (San Diego, Calif.) paired with Caffuzzi and Boloyan for two blocks to keep the Bantams close at 23-18, but the Jumbos added two points to close out the set.

Tufts took control of the third set early, grabbing a 9-2 lead behind three kills from Farragher. Tufts first-year Emma Heckman (San Diego, Calif.) knocked a pair of kills to help escort the lead to 15-6. Lekovic recorded four kills for Trinity over the final points, but the Jumbos ran away to the 25-15 win.

Lekovic paced the Bantams attack with a match-high 11 kills. Gordon added six kills and two digs, while Boloyan and Caffuzzi chipped in four kills apiece. Sophomore Caroline Howell (Houston, Texas) totaled a double-double with a team-high 12 assists with 10 digs, and junior Grace Sullivan (Fort Worth, Texas) had 10 assists. First-year libero Scarlett Jago snared a match-high 14 digs in the loss.

The Bantams will return to the court with a NESCAC road trip to Wesleyan University Wednesday night. First serve is slated for 6:00 p.m.