NORTHAMPTON, Mass. — Smith College Volleyball (11-1, 1-0 NEWMAC) plays its first NEWMAC road match of the season Saturday, Sept. 26, at No. 19 Babson College (9-1, 1-0 NEWMAC). First serve is set for 2 p.m. at Staake Gymnasium in Babson Park, Mass. Both teams enter on winning streaks after sweeping their conference openers Tuesday.

Smith at No. 19 Babson
Saturday, Sept. 26 | 2 p.m.
Staake Gymnasium | Babson Park, Mass.

SERIES HISTORY

• Smith leads the all-time series 26-17 in a rivalry that dates back to 1986.
• Babson has won eight of the last 10 meetings going back to 2015.
• The Bears have won their last two matches at Babson Park, both 3-1 decisions in 2022 and 2024. Smith is 11-7 all-time on the road against the Beavers.

LAST MEETING

• Babson edged Smith in five sets (25-18, 22-25, 25-23, 16-25, 15-13) at Ainsworth Gym on Sept. 27, 2025.
• Alison Chapin (Temecula, CA/Temecula Valley High School) led the Bears with 17 kills. Mia Etheridge (Half Moon Bay, CA/Half Moon Bay) added 13 kills, five aces and a team-high 19 points, and Anna Feuer (Frederick, MD/Governor Thomas Johnson) posted six blocks.
• Smith finished with 13 aces and 12 blocks. Babson outhit the Bears in kills, 55-47.

SCOUTING THE BEARS

• Smith has won two straight. It opened NEWMAC play Tuesday with a 3-0 sweep of Coast Guard at Ainsworth Gym.
• Against Coast Guard, Smith hit .211, held Coast Guard to a .066 attack percentage and out-blocked it 12-3.
• Nola Gannon (Dallas, Texas/Townview TAG) led Smith against Coast Guard with 11 kills and three blocks. Etheridge had eight kills and Chapin had seven. Ruth Tullis (Edmond, OK/Oklahoma Christian School) recorded 15 digs, and Hana Suzuki (Chattanooga, TN/East Hamilton High School) added 13 digs and 13 assists. Skye Higashihara (Honolulu, HI/'Iolani School) handed out 14 assists, and Uma Schulz (Riverwoods, IL/Deerfield High School) posted four blocks.
• Etheridge leads the team with 110 kills and 133.5 points. She has also added 96 digs and a .919 reception percentage.
• Chapin paces the attack at 3.03 kills per set, with 109 kills.
• Feuer is hitting .399 with 70 kills and leads the team with 50 blocks, or 1.35 per set.
• Higashihara directs the offense with 209 assists. Suzuki has contributed 152 assists and a team-high 17 aces.
• Tullis anchors the back row with 105 digs, 3.39 per set, and a .925 reception percentage.

SCOUTING THE BEAVERS

• No. 19 Babson has won four straight. It swept Wheaton 25-17, 25-16, 25-19 on Tuesday in its NEWMAC opener.
• Hailey Fouche and Angelina Holm each had 10 kills and two blocks against Wheaton. Zoe Ackerman handed out 33 assists, and Sabina Frosk led all players with 18 digs.
• Fouche averages 3.50 kills per set, and Ailsa Munro owns a team-best .365 hitting percentage.
• Ackerman ranks among the Division III leaders in assists per set. Frosk was named NEWMAC Defensive Athlete of the Week on Sept. 21.
• Babson is 39-3 at Staake Gymnasium since the start of the 2023 season. The Beavers were picked second in the NEWMAC preseason poll.

COMMON GROUND

• Both teams played at the New England Fall Classic hosted by Babson on Sept. 19.
• Smith fell 3-0 to William Smith and beat Union 3-1. Babson swept both William Smith and Union.

BEAR BITES

• Etheridge put down a match-high 23 kills in the 3-1 win over Union on Sept. 19. She followed with 14 kills and three aces against Endicott.
• Smith has held opponents to a .110 hitting percentage or lower in each of its last three wins: Endicott (.074), Union (.109) and Coast Guard (.066).
• The Bears hit .380 against Endicott and .361 against Union.
• Feuer had 10 kills and four blocks against Endicott and served three aces against Union.
• Sara Warren (Long Beach, CA/Sato) posted six blocks against Endicott.
• First-year Natalia Rossi (Mebane, North Carolina/Eno River Academy) recorded 10 digs against Union.
• First-year Gannon led the Bears with 11 kills against Coast Guard.
• Smith is 5-0 at Ainsworth Gym this fall.

NUMBERS TO KNOW

• Smith is hitting .250 as a team and holding opponents to a .106 attack percentage.
• The Bears average 12.26 kills, 2.35 aces and 2.30 blocks per set.
• Smith is 1-0 in true road matches and 5-1 at neutral sites this season.

UP NEXT

• Smith travels to Springfield College on Tuesday, Sept. 29, for a 7 p.m. NEWMAC match.

About Smith Athletics
Smith College is a NCAA Division III member of the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) that sponsors 11 intercollegiate sports. For more information, log on to GoSmithBears.com and follow the Bears on Facebook and Instagram.