Gallery: (9-1-2026) Women's Volleyball vs Western New Engl.
ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. — The Bard College women's volleyball team dropped its season opener with a competitive three-set battle against Western New England on Tuesday night at Stevenson Athletic Center. The Golden Bears came away with the 3-0 victory, taking the sets 25-21, 25-23 and 25-22.
The Raptors had several strong individual performances in the season opener, with plenty of new faces on the team. First-year Nala Roman led Bard with nine kills, while Xenia Vassou put together an efficient night with eight kills and no errors on 12 attempts for a .667 hitting percentage. Junior transfer Isis Pribble added four kills, six digs and three service aces, while Ava Rhinehart finished with three kills, a team-high nine digs and three aces.
Bard's two-setter offense saw Fernanda Julian record a team-high 14 assists and six digs, while Paola De La Cruz added 10 assists and three kills. Penelope Joosten Lingo anchored the back row with a match-high 11 digs, and Adrianna Howell contributed eight digs.
The opening set saw Western New England jump out to an early 5-0 advantage, but Bard continued to chip away. Trailing 21-16 late in the frame, the Raptors rattled off five of the next six points behind kills from Gia Gomez and Rhinehart and an ace from Julian, pulling within one to 22-21. Western New England responded with the final three points to secure the 25-21 set.
Bard came out strong in the second, with back-to-back Rhinehart aces giving the Raptors an early 3-1 lead. Western New England answered and eventually built a 19-8 advantage, but the Raptors refused to go away. Bard mounted an impressive late comeback, using a 15-5 stretch to pull within one at 24-23. Roman supplied four kills during the comeback, while Rhinehart, Pribble and De La Cruz also contributed offensively. The Golden Bears ultimately escaped with the set, 25-23.
The Raptors carried that momentum into the third set, racing out to a 10-3 advantage. Vassou had two kills during the early run, while Roman added another and Pribble delivered an ace. Bard maintained the lead deep into the set and held a 21-19 advantage after Julian's service ace. Western New England responded by winning six of the final seven points to take the set 25-22 and close out the match.
Despite the result, Bard finished with 31 kills, along with 10 service aces and 47 digs. The Raptors were especially efficient in the opening set, hitting .379 with 12 kills and just one attack error.
Bard will be on the road as they head to Arcadia for the Arcadia Quad, where the Raptors will face Catholic on Friday at 4 p.m., and then two matches on Saturday against Muhlenberg at 11:00 a.m. and Arcadia at 1 p.m.
