Cambridge, MA --- The WPI women's volleyball team saw its 2026 season come to a close Tuesday evening, falling to host MIT, 3-0 (25-23, 25-18, 25-19), in the NEWMAC Championship Tournament quarterfinals at Rockwell Cage. The Engineers conclude their campaign with a 12-15 overall record, while MIT improves to 23-4 and advances to the conference semifinals.
The postseason appearance marked WPI's first trip to the NEWMAC Tournament since 2019, as the Crimson and Gray earned the seventh seed in the eight-team championship field.
MIT hit .296 for the match, registering 49 kills against 15 attack errors, while WPI finished with a .157 hitting percentage on 35 kills. The Engineers held a 6-4 advantage in team blocks, while the hosts recorded 56 digs compared to 41 for WPI.
Senior middle blocker
Zeala VanDamme (San Diego, CA) led the Engineers with 11 kills on a blistering .579 hitting percentage without committing an attack error, while adding five block assists for a team-high 13.5 points. Sophomore middle blocker
Olivia Hutchinson (Erie, PA) paced WPI with a team-best 12 kills, while sophomore outside hitter
Bridget Spees (Saint Johns, FL) collected a team-high 15 digs and two service aces.
Junior outside hitter
Anastasia Kelnik (Fair Lawn, NJ) chipped in with six kills and an ace, while sophomore setter
Amelia Lynch (Charlottesville, VA) handed out 12 assists and registered four block assists. Sophomore setter
Lauren Boycourt (San Diego, CA) dished out a team-high 15 assists, while first-year libero
Jennah DiMartino (Mission Viejo, CA) contributed eight digs and three assists.
For MIT,
Eileen Sadati (San Juan Capistrano, CA) led all players with 13 kills on a .455 hitting percentage and added two block assists.
Julia Tolstova (Redlands, CA) registered a double-double with 11 kills and 11 digs, while
Miller Grimes (Charlottesville, VA) put down nine kills without an error on a .750 hitting mark.
Jennifer Cen added eight kills on a .429 hitting percentage and three block assists.
Kayleigh May (Camarillo, CA) directed the MIT offense with a match-high 43 assists, six digs and two aces, while
Sophia Song (Plano, TX) paced the hosts with a match-high 16 digs.
The Engineers jumped out to an early 4-1 advantage in the opening set before MIT responded with a 9-2 stretch to take a 10-6 lead. WPI battled back behind a Kelnik service ace and a Hutchinson kill to even the score at 13-13. The two sides continued to trade points, with VanDamme putting the Crimson and Gray ahead 19-18 before Spees delivered a kill to give WPI a 20-19 edge. MIT answered with three consecutive points to move in front 22-20, but Spees served an ace to bring the Engineers even at 22-22. Hutchinson later delivered a kill to tie the frame at 23-23 before a Sadati kill and a WPI attack error secured the 25-23 victory for the hosts.
WPI opened the second set with a 3-1 advantage and remained within striking distance through the early stages, drawing even at 8-8 following a block from Lynch and VanDamme. MIT responded with four consecutive points to take a 12-8 lead before extending its margin to 18-10 behind a six-point run highlighted by two May service aces and a pair of Sadati kills. The Engineers answered with four straight points, including a Hailey kill and a block from Hutchinson and Hailey, to trim the deficit to 18-14. MIT regained control down the stretch, claiming seven of the final 11 points to secure the 25-18 decision and take a 2-0 match advantage.
The third frame featured a back-and-forth opening before MIT used a three-point surge to build a 7-4 lead. The hosts extended their advantage to 15-7, but WPI continued to battle as consecutive Hutchinson kills trimmed the deficit to 15-9. VanDamme sparked another push with three kills during a 5-3 stretch that brought the Engineers within 18-14. MIT responded with five of the next seven points to move ahead 23-16 before WPI mounted one final rally. A Spees kill, an MIT attack error and a kill from first-year outside hitter
Niki Szavuly (Woodinville, WA) brought the Crimson and Gray within 23-19, but the hosts collected the final two points to secure the 25-19 victory and the three-set triumph.
The setback concludes a milestone campaign for Worcester's Engineers, who returned to the NEWMAC postseason for the first time in seven seasons after securing their tournament berth with a sweep of Wheaton and closing the regular season with a five-set road victory at Salve Regina.
