The Conard girls volleyball team hosted Bloomfield in West Hartford on Senior Night.

Sports reporting is sponsored by Keating Agency Insurance

By Cole Schweiger

Conard High School girls volleyball closed out its home schedule in memorable fashion Tuesday evening, sweeping Bloomfield High School 3-0 in straight sets during a night that celebrated five seniors and marked a return to form for the Red Wolves.

Coming off two consecutive losses, Conard (then 9-4) was eager to find its rhythm again and reach the 10-win mark as the regular season winds down next week. Despite a slow start and a bit of underestimation of winless Bloomfield (0-16), the Red Wolves quickly found their footing. Strong defensive play set the tone early, creating scoring opportunities that helped Conard secure the first set and maintain full control the rest of the way.

With momentum on their side, the Red Wolves rotated in younger players who made the most of their opportunities, while the seniors enjoyed one last chance to take the court together at home.

Tuesday also served as Senior Night, honoring five members of the Class of 2025: Kate Riker, Chimka Buckley, Jayme Kline, Ellie Kroll, and Aubrey Montresor.

Montresor, a captain, reflected on both the emotions of the night and the team’s mindset heading into the postseason.

“Honestly, I didn’t even realize before I got to Conard on senior night that it was our very last scheduled home game,” Montresor said. “It was definitely emotional going into the game knowing it might be our last one at home, and it was crazy to realize that our season is coming to an end after creating so many great memories and friendships within the program.”

Montresor also spoke about the importance of growth and attention to detail as Conard prepares for the postseason.

“We always recognize that there is a broad range of things we need to work on after every game, no matter if we win or lose,” she said. “Recently our coaches have been pushing us to focus on the small details of our gameplay. It’s been beneficial because it gives everyone a chance to make quick changes to improve during a period of time when we’re having only one or two practices per week due to the number of matches.”

Looking ahead, Montresor set both individual and team goals as the regular season comes to a close.

“An individual goal for myself is to make the defensive changes I need to in order to make running our offense easier for our setter, Jayme Kline,” she said. “A goal I hope our team can achieve in the postseason is to bring together everything we’ve been working on and use it to help us succeed in the tournament.”

Following Wednesday’s loss to Woodstock, Conard (now 9-5) will finish its regular season on the road with three more matchups, including a much-anticipated rivalry game against Hall on Tuesday, before awaiting postseason seeding.

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