WORCESTER --- WPI Volleyball fell to nationally-ranked MIT in four sets to open conference action on Tuesday evening inside the newly revamped Harrington Auditorium. MIT secured the match by scores of 25-15, 25-22, 21-25 and 25-10.
With the loss, WPI drops to 7-5 and 0-1 in NEWMAC play as MIT, ranked 16th in the most recent AVCA/TARAFLEX Division III Women's Volleyball Polls, improves to 9-3 and 1-0 in conference action.
The first set featured a strong attack from both squads as MIT and WPI combined for 13 kills among the first 10 points recorded for each team. The Crimson and Gray posted kills from five different Engineers to bring the match to 9-8 before MIT registered a six-point run backed by six consecutive kills.
Fiona Gillis (Manchester, NH) and
Olivia Hutchinson (Erie, PA) brought the set back to 16-12 before MIT rattled four-straight kills and an ace for a commanding 21-21 lead. A few errors for MIT brought the score to a 21-15 mark before the visitors rallied with three more kills and four points for the first set win.
Cambridge's Engineers raced to a fast start in the second set as the visitors jumped out to an 11-6 lead before kills from
Bridget Spees (Saint Johns, FL) and Hutchinson brought the match to within three leading to an MIT timeout. WPI took advantage of a pair of attack errors, bad set and back-to-back service aces from Hutchinson to give the Crimson and Gray a 13-12 lead. Both squads exchanged attack errors keeping the match close and not exceeding a two-point margin until three WPI attack errors and multiple kills
Eileen Sadati (San Juan Capistrano, CA) put away the second set, 25-22.
WPI responded in the third set surging out to a 12-6 start after taking advantage of five errors by MIT.
Anastasia Kelnik (Fair Lawn, NJ), Spees,
Julia Colantuoni (Amherst, NH) and Gillis recorded kills to keep the lead at five. WPI enjoyed then kills
Zeala VanDamme (San Diego, CA) and a service error to extend the lead to 20-12. The Crimson and Gray compiled kills from Kelnik, Hutchinson, VanDamme and an ace from Colantuoni to take a set in the match at 25-21.
MIT quickly reestablished control in the fourth set, racing out to a 7-1 advantage on a pair of early kills from
Claire Underwood (Yorba Linda, CA),
Daphne Gavros (Bel Tiburon, CA) and
Ella Zhou (San Diego, CA) and an ace by Sadati. Underwood then tacked on a trio helping the visitors out to a 15-7 lead.
Ali Gibbs (Chagrin Falls, OH),
Kayleigh May (Camarillo, CA) and
Jessie Trapp (Elmhurst, IL) helped push the lead to a 23-9 before a final pair of Trapp kills to conclude the match.
MIT's Underwood (15), Gibbs (14) and Sadati (12) combined for 41 kills as May lead the group with 49 assists as Gavros recorded 18 digs on the evening en route to surpassing the 1,000-dig milestone. VanDamme, Kelnik and Hutchinson finished with six kills. VanDamme and Hutchinson finished with six blocks on the evening as
Lauren Boycourt (San Diego, CA) and
Preslie Jerebker (Denver, CO) combined for 26 assists as
Victoria Escuer (Caracas, Venezuela) posted 31 digs on the night.
Worcester and Cambridge's Engineers hit the road Saturday for NEWMAC action as WPI heads to Springfield for a match starting at 1pm as MIT ventures New London to take on Coast Guard for a 12pm start.
