Sports

Volleyball Wins Tourney As 2007 Campaign Opens

Coach Dill Records 300th Career Win in Title Match

The MIT women’s volleyball team kicked off its 2007 campaign by winning its sixth straight Gordon College Invitational last Saturday. The Engineers opened the day by sweeping Lasell College (30-14, 30-11, 30-18), and then outlasted Endicott College (27-30, 30-27, 30-32, 30-24, 15-11) in a five-game thriller. MIT blanked Johnson and Wales University (30-17, 30-28, 30-21) in the title match to give head coach Paul Dill his 300th career victory. Amanda J. Morris ’08 was named the Tournament MVP, while Rose Zhong ’08 was selected to the All-Tournament Team.

Against Lasell, Zhong paced Tech’s offense with 11 kills to go along with 11 digs and two aces. Carrie C. Buchanan ’08 registered a team-high 21 digs and five aces, and Emily Obert ’11 added three aces of her own. Katherine C. Rowe ’10 and Jennifer Li ’11 rounded out MIT’s attacking unit with 10 and seven kills, respectively. Rowe and Katrina M. Ellison ’10 each posted three blocks, while Morris dished out 26 assists over the course of two games. Cassy A. Piela ’11 totaled 11 assists and two aces in one game.

In the Engineers’ final pool game versus Endicott, Zhong recorded a career-high 17 kills and added 17 digs. Kelsey K. Cappelle ’11 notched 15 kills, and Rowe registered 12 kills and three aces. Lindsay E. Hunting ’09 equaled her career-best mark of 24 digs as Buchanan amassed 22 digs. Li and Ellison bolstered MIT’s defense with six and four blocks, respectively. Morris tallied 47 assists and six aces while Buchanan and Hunting both chipped in three aces.

Li was a force at the net during the championship match against Johnson and Wales, as she recorded eight kills and five blocks. Rowe led the way with 15 kills and two aces, and Morris distributed 33 assists. Zhong paced the back row with 11 digs, followed by Anna D. Dikina ’11 with nine and Buchanan with eight. Ellison and Zhong rounded out MIT’s offense with six kills apiece.

MIT plays its home opener on Tuesday, Sept. 11, against Smith College at 7 p.m.