Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Waltham, MA --- The WPI Volleyball team dropped a 3-1 (25-21, 16-25, 25-20, 25-21) decision to host Brandeis on Friday evening at Red Auerbach Arena. The Engineers fall to 0-2 on the season, while the Judges improve to 2-0.
 
Sophomore Olivia Hutchinson (Erie, PA) paced the Engineers with 15 kills while hitting .387 and added three total blocks. Zeala VanDamme (San Diego, CA) added nine kills without an attack error, hitting .818 on 11 attempts. Bridget Spees (Saint Johns, FL) contributed eight kills, 17 digs and an ace, while freshman Niki Szavuly (Woodinville, WA) recorded eight kills and five service aces. Amelia Lynch (Charlottesville, VA) directed the WPI attack with 34 assists while adding nine digs and a block. Jennah DiMartino (Mission Viejo, CA) anchored the defense with 20 digs, while Anastasia Kelnik (Fair Lawn, NJ) added four kills and a block.
 
Brandeis was led by Madison Haft-Abromovitch (Stratford, CT), who finished with a match-high 18 kills, an ace and a block. Kennedy Lilly (Atlanta, GA) added 11 kills, three aces and two blocks, while Emmory Casto (Castle Rock, CO) also recorded 11 kills and seven digs. Camila Valenzuela (Winter Park, FL) handed out 38 assists and served five aces, while Taylor Lewis (Haverhill, MA) contributed 10 digs.
 
Brandeis grabbed an early 3-1 lead in the opening set before WPI answered with three straight points to move in front 6-3. The Judges responded with a 6-1 run to regain the lead at 9-7 and later stretched the advantage to 13-10. Brandeis continued to maintain a cushion before taking a 17-12 lead. WPI battled back late, scoring four of five points to pull within 23-18 and then trimming the deficit to 24-21 on a kill from Hutchinson and an ace from Oslosky. Haft-Abromovitch answered with a kill to close out the set, 25-21.
 
The Engineers responded in the second set, battling back from an early 7-4 deficit to take a 9-8 lead. The teams continued to exchange points, with WPI holding a 14-13 advantage before Brandeis pulled even at 16-16. From there, the Engineers took complete control, scoring the final nine points of the set. Szavuly delivered two aces during the decisive run, and Spees recorded the final two kills as WPI finished off the 25-16 victory to even the match.
 
The third set remained close through the opening stages, with the teams tied at 1-1, 2-2, 3-3 and 5-5 before Brandeis moved ahead 8-6. WPI answered to tie the set at 8-8 and later pulled within 12-11. The Judges then created separation with a 5-1 stretch to take an 18-13 lead. WPI battled back behind kills from Hutchinson and Szavuly, trimming the deficit to 18-16, but Brandeis answered with four of the next five points to move ahead 22-17. The Judges reached set point at 24-20 and closed out the frame on the next rally, 25-20.
 
WPI opened the fourth set with a 2-0 lead and later held a 7-5 advantage after Hutchinson recorded three consecutive kills and Oslosky followed with an ace. Brandeis answered with a 4-0 run to move ahead 9-7, but the Engineers battled back to tie the set at 10-10. The Judges eventually built a 14-12 lead, but WPI responded with consecutive points, including a DiMartino ace, to knot the frame at 14-14. Brandeis scored the next two points before WPI again pulled even at 16-16. The Judges then used a four-point run to take a 20-16 advantage. WPI remained within striking distance, pulling to 22-20 on a kill from VanDamme, but Brandeis scored three of the final four points to secure the 25-21 victory and the match.
 
WPI returns to action Saturday at the Brandeis Invitational, taking on Wentworth at 11am before facing Williams at 1pm.