Women’s Volleyball Sweeps Mt. Holyoke in QuarterfinalEarly Offense Helps Women’s Soccer Top SmithTech Duo Named Sailors of the WeekWater Polo Claims Small College Crown
Women’s Volleyball Sweeps Mt. Holyoke in Quarterfinal
MIT, ranked No. 25 nationally, defeated Mount Holyoke College, 30-10, 30-19, 30-22, in a New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference Women’s Volleyball Championship Tournament quarterfinal match on Tuesday. The Engineers (33-1) will host the remainder of the tournament and square off with U.S. Coast Guard Academy at 5 p.m. today in a semifinal match up.
After trading points to start the match, MIT mounted a 14-2 run which was keyed by strong serving from Amanda J. Morris ’08. With a 19-6 advantage, a serve of Lindsay E. Hunting ’09 set off another six-point spurt by the Engineers that put the game out of reach.
Mount Holyoke maintained a two-point edge during the early stages of the second game. Trailing 11-9, MIT won the ensuing serve and then took the lead on back-to-back hits from Kelsey K. Cappelle ’11. The Lyons immediately evened the contest at 12; however, the Engineers countered with four unanswered points for their largest advantage of the game. Mount Holyoke closed the gap to three (16-13) on a service error, but it would not be enough as MIT captured 14 of the final 20 points for the victory.
The Engineers raced out to a 10-2 advantage in the third game. The Lyons slowly chipped away at the deficit, eventually narrowing their margin to five (17-12). MIT responded by doubling its lead for a score of 26-16. After exchanging points, Rosa Marruffo’s prowess at the service line sparked a late rally that brought Mount Holyoke once again within five (27-22). The Cardinal and Gray won the ensuing point and thwarted the comeback with a blast by Anna D. Dikina ’11 from the back row. A kill by Emily Obert ’11 clinched the match and sent MIT to its 10th consecutive NEWMAC semifinal appearance.
Early Offense Helps Women’s Soccer Top Smith
MIT advanced to the semifinals of the NEWMAC Women’s Soccer Tournament after topping Smith College, 2-0, at Steinbrenner Stadium. The Engineers scored both of their goals in the first five minutes of the opening half to advance past the opening round for the first time since 2002.
Amy S. Ludlum ’08 set up both of Saturday’s finishes with great touch on two counter-attacks. Midfielder Janine M. Hopmans ’08 lit the board for MIT (12-5-0) in the third minute after taking a pass by Ludlum to the left side of the net where she sent a ground shot past a pursuing defender as well as Smith keeper Lauren Bachtel. The shot from eight-yards out resulted in Hopmans’ seventh goal of the campaign.
Less than two minutes later, the Cardinal and Gray upped its lead to two off the foot of forward Jean E. “Liz” Theurer. Ludlum served a beautiful ball to Theurer, who split two defenders en route to her 11th score of the season, although Theurer ignited the opportunity with a through ball to Ludlum at midfield.
With the victory, the Engineers advanced to the semifinals of the NEWMAC Tournament for the first time since making their lone run to the conference final in 2002, while tying for the second-highest single-season win total in team history. It also improved MIT’s home record in 2007 to 8-1-0.
Ludlum’s two assists gave her 51 points and set a new Institute record for points in a season in the history of the men’s and women’s programs.
—James Kramer, DAPER Staff
Tech Duo Named Sailors of the Week
Four weeks after being selected to the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association All-Academic Team, John M. “Jack” Field ’08 and Julie C. Arsenault ’08 have hit the top of the charts again. Field, the skipper, and crew Arsenault were named New England Intercollegiate Sailing Association Sailors of the Week for their outstanding performance in last weekend’s Schell Trophy.
Battling west to northwest winds, Tech’s dynamic A-Division duo finished second in its circuit, leading the Engineers to the overall win among 18 teams along the Charles River. The victory also clinched a berth for MIT at the Atlantic Coast Championship in Florida on Nov. 13-14.
To make the outing incredibly remarkable, Field and Arsenault recovered from 18th and 17th place finishes in the first and third rounds, respectively. They finished in the top five in 10 of the remaining 15 rounds, with no rankings worse than ninth.
“This past weekend, we had a truly stunning victory,” Arsenault said. “We took first in the Schell Trophy, which is something MIT hasn’t been able to do for 27 years. It was truly a competitive regatta, with many of the nation’s top sailors attending.”
Water Polo Claims Small College Crown
MIT’s water polo team captured its second title of the weekend on Sunday afternoon by virtue of a 12-10 win over Division II Mercyhurst College in the Collegiate Water Polo Association Small College Championship game. Less than 24 hours earlier, the Engineers defeated Washington and Jefferson College to claim the CWPA Division III Eastern Championship.
The entire tournament was hosted by MIT in the Zesiger Center Pool.
Devin M. Lewis ’10, who led the Cardinal and Gray with 14 goals over the course of the weekend, was named the Division III Tournament Most Valuable Player. Goalkeeper Nicholas A. Souza ’10 and Morgan S. Laidlaw ’08 earned First Team accolades, while teammates Michael R. Smith-Bronstein ’09 and John V. Preis ’11 were named to the Second Team.
Sunday afternoon’s meeting with Mercyhurst was a tense battle from start to finish. A defensive-minded first half from both sides saw MIT take a 4-2 lead into the break, but a three-goal outburst to open the third quarter stretched Tech’s advantage to 7-2, as the Engineers threatened to bust the game open. However, the Lakers stormed back with five unanswered goals to even the score at 7-7 heading into the final period. The teams traded goals to begin the fourth, but a Brian C. Gardiner ’11 man-advantage strike sparked a three-goal run that put MIT up, 12-9. Mercyhurst cut the lead to 12-10 by converting a penalty throw with 30 seconds remaining, but the Engineers subsequently ran out the final half-minute to seal the title.
MIT will return to action this weekend when it will host the CWPA Northern Division Championships on Saturday, Nov. 3 and Sunday, Nov. 4.