Liz Leberman '10

Beth Billington '09

AMHERST, Mass. -- Amherst College will host the upcoming NESCAC Championships thanks to a 3-0 win over the Bates College volleyball team on Saturday. The Lord Jeffs will enter the tournament with a 25-3 overall record and 9-1 mark in conference play.

After earning a convincing 30-10 win in the first game, Amherst used an early 10-point run to cruise to a 30-17 victory in game two. Bates jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the third game, but the Jeffs got back on track and pulled off another 30-17 win to end the match.

Bates sophomore Liz Leberman (Concord, N.H.) led the Bobcats (7-23, 0-9 NESCAC) with seven kills and added five digs, while junior Beth Billington (St. Paul, Minn.) added five kills and three blocks. Sophomore Elise Edmonson (Crystal Lake, Ill.) collected five assists, seven digs and two service aces. Other statistical leaders for Bates included sophomore Avery Masters (Mill Valley, Calif.) with five blocks, senior Brittany Clement (Gobles, Mich.) with eight assists and four digs, and sophomore Brit Johnston (Winter Park, Colo.) with eight digs.

Bates will play at Bowdoin in a NESCAC matchup on Sunday at 1 p.m. for their final match of the season.

First-year Jackie Berkley, junior Alison Munzer and senior tri-captain Whitney Kouvaris each had nine kills to lead the Amherst attack. Senior tri-captain Julie Berkley and first-year Rachel Yorke each had five service aces and led the Jeffs with 10 and 15 digs, respectively.

Amherst had never received better than a No. 3 seed in the NESCAC tournament, but this year will host the three-day event as the No. 1 seed. The Jeffs will return to action in the quarterfinal round with a 6 p.m. match against the No. 8 seed, which will be determined this weekend.