CLAREMONT, Calif. – The Carleton volleyball team split a pair of matches for the second straight day on Saturday to close out the Pacific Coast Classic 2-2 on the opening weekend of the 2026 season. The Knights defeated Chapman University 3-1 to start the day before falling to Occidental College 3-1 to cap the weekend.
Match 1 – Carleton 3, Chapman 1
Carleton set the tone early in the opening set of Saturday's first match, racing out to a 5-1 lead behind a pair of kills from sophomore
Sami Torresin and another from fellow sophomore
Ella Goolsby. Chapman briefly closed the gap to 7-7 following a service ace by Kelsey Magley, but the Knights responded with a four-point run featuring consecutive kills by junior Ellewyn Swafford and one more from senior Rachel Bingham to regain control at 11-7. Late kills from first-year Alexis Ormsby, Swafford, and Bingham gave the Knights a key four-point swing to open up a 20-16 lead and eventually pushed Carleton to seal the 25-22 opening set win.
The second set featured a back-and-forth battle containing 13 ties and six lead changes. Chapman generated early momentum to take a 5-0 lead, but Carleton answered with five straight points of its own, capped by a kill from Bingham. Trailing 24-21 late in the set, the Knights staved off three set points with back-to-back kills from Ormsby and an ace by sophomore Angelina Erhardt to tie the score at 24-24. However, the Panthers managed to outlast the push, taking the frame 27-25 on a kill from Sasha Pugh.
Carleton bounced back in set three. Trailing 18-17 late in the frame, the Knights finished the set on an 8-3 run to take the set. A kill by Torresin leveled the score, and subsequent blocks by senior Jennifer Bricker, first solo then assisted by Torresin, pushed the Knights ahead 22-19. Torresin added another late kill before an error by the Panthers handed Carleton the 25-21 victory to take a 2-1 match lead.
The fourth and final set delivered a marathon finish with 11 ties and six lead changes. After Carleton built an 18-14 lead, Chapman used an 8-1 run to surge to a 22-19 advantage late. But the Knights were up for the challenge. Bingham ignited the Knights with a clutch kill to spur the Maize and Blue on to score five of the next six points and take a 24-23 lead. The two sides traded points until tied at 26-26, where Ormsby put Carleton ahead with a kill before Swafford hammered down the final point to secure the 28-26 set victory and the 3-1 match win.
Bingham led the Knights' attack with a career-high 26 kills. She also completed a double-double with 13 digs. Torresin contributed her career-high 11 kills and four block assists, while Swafford and Ormsby added nine kills apiece. Megan Smith directed the offense with 49 assists and anchored the defense with 23 digs for her second double-double of the season. Defensively, junior Madeleine Dimitre recorded a team-high 28 digs and sophomore Aditi Mukhirala added 11. At the net, Jennifer Bricker provided four total blocks (one solo, three assists) to cap off the Carleton stat leaders.
Match 2 – Carleton 1, Occidental 3
Carleton came out firing in the opening set of its second match of the day, controlling the tempo behind a blistering offense
. After trading early points, the Knights built a 16-11 lead following a kill by Ellewyn Swafford and an Occidental attack error. An ace from Aditi Mukhirala extended the lead to 19-13 and kept the Tigers at bay. Up 21-16, Rachel Bingham put down a strike to spur a three-point run and take a 24-16 lead before later putting away a set-winning kill for a 25-18 victory.
Occidental regrouped in set two, taking advantage of a mid-set 10-3 run to shift momentum. Tied 9-9, the Tigers used a pair of kills and an ace to spark the run and build a 19-12 advantage. Carleton refused to go quietly, staging a late four-point surge to narrow the deficit to 24-21. However, Occidental's Jasmine Shum answered with a set-ending kill to seal the frame 25-21.
The third set featured a tightly contested battle down the stretch. Leading 14-13, Occidental took control of the middle of the set with six consecutive points—highlighted by two Chloe Jeong service aces—to claim a 20-13 lead. But the Knights dug in again, mounting a furious late charge, scoring 10 of the next 14 points. Kills by Bingham, Bricker, Ormsby, and Swafford alongside an Angelina Erhardt service ace closed the gap to 24-23. But despite the late pressure, Occidental managed to force a Carleton attack error to hang on for the 25-23 set win.
Carleton surged out to an early 10-5 lead in set four behind a pair of service aces from Erhardt. That lead grew to six (15-9) before Occidental answered with a 10-2 response to take a 19-17 lead, but the Knights battled back to score three straight and take a 20-19 lead following an Ormsby kill. But Occidental answered with six of the final eight points of the set to close out the 25-22 match-clinching victory.
Bingham led the offensive attack again for Carleton with a match-high 18 kills to go along with 13 digs and a service ace for her second straight double-double. Ormsby posted a career-high 12 kills, while Swafford chipped in 9 kills and two aces. Setter Megan Smith posted 42 assists and added 9 digs. On defense, libero Madeleine Dimitre anchored the back row with a match-high 31 digs, while Angelina Erhardt chipped in 10 digs and three aces.
Up Next for the Knights
Carleton will be back in action next Friday, Sept. 11 at the Macalester Invitational. The Knights will take on Central College at 3pm in St. Paul.
