Men’s Cross Country Captures Plansky InvitationalWomen’s Volleyball Claims First Place in Quad TournamentMen’s Soccer Holds Off Coast Guard, 2-1
Men’s Cross Country Captures Plansky Invitational
The nationally-ranked No. 23 MIT men’s cross country team finished first out of nine teams at Saturday’s Plansky Invitational hosted by Williams College. The meet served as the Engineers’ final tune-up before the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) championships in two weeks at Franklin Park.
Five Tech runners finished in the top 11 to push MIT past The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) by 14 points. Jake J. Ruzevick ’09 continued to show improvement after missing a few races earlier in the season, pacing the Engineers and finishing third overall with a time of 26:32. Paul D. Welle ’11 crossed the finish line directly behind him, just a second slower. Jeremiah “Yermie” R. Cohen ’09 was the third straight MIT runner to finish, eight seconds behind Welle. For the first time this season, Hemagiri Arumugam ’10 (26:52) was not the fastest Tech runner, as his eighth place finish was good for fourth on the team. Trevor B. Rundell ’09 rounded out the scoring, placing 11th with a time of 27:01.
Christopher Guerriero of TCNJ was the top overall finisher with a time of 25:25. The Engineers and Lions accounted for seven of the top nine runners.
MIT returns to action in two weeks, on Saturday, Nov. 1 when they host the NEWMAC championships at Franklin Park. The men’s race begins at 11:00 a.m.
—Greg McKeever, DAPER Staff
Women’s Volleyball Claims First Place in Quad Tournament
For the fourth year in a row the MIT women’s volleyball team captured the MIT Quad Tournament title.
MIT started tournament play by defeating Western New England College in straight sets (25-11, 25-13, 25-17) and went on to defeat Saint Mary’s College (25-21, 19-25, 25-17, 25-20). In their final game, the Engineers fell to Millikin University (25-21, 26-24, 19-25, 12-25, 20-18).
With MIT, Millikin, and Saint Mary’s each compiling a 2-1 tournament ledger, games won-lost among the tied teams determined the final rankings. The Engineers came out on top with a 5-4 mark, followed by Millikin (5-5), and Saint Mary’s (4-5). WNEC rounded out the field with a fourth-place finish.
MIT’s Alexandra T. May ’10 was named the tournament MVP, and Katrina M. Ellison ’10 earned a place on the all-tournament team.
—Mindy Brauer, DAPER Staff
Men’s Soccer Holds Off Coast Guard, 2-1
Despite a furious charge by the U.S. Coast Guard Academy during the final three minutes of regulation, the MIT men’s soccer team held on for a 2-1 victory in a New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) contest on Saturday.
The early stages of the game were a defensive battle as numerous scoring opportunities were turned away on both sides. MIT eventually broke through in the 31st minute courtesy on a free kick. Kevin L. Chou’s ’11 service from the near side was barely punched out by Coast Guard goalie Tim Olah but the ball caromed off David M. Nole’s ’09 head and into the upper right corner of the net.
MIT wasted little time in the second half as it extended its lead to 2-0 after three minutes had elapsed. On a throw-in by Neil S. Zimmerman ’09, the ball landed in front of the net and was surrounded by several players. Andrew M. Bishara ’09 managed to redirect the ball for his first goal of the season.
The Bears nearly cut their deficit in half on a point-blank header by Thomas Cameron in the 58th minute that was smothered by MIT goalie Dylan S. Rankin ’12. Coast Guard continued to attack and in the 79th minute, Nate Wojcik gathered a feed from Jacob Larsen on the near side and sent the ball to the far left corner.
The intensity from both sides increased down the stretch, and the Bears earned a pair of free kicks inside the final three minutes, but both opportunities were thwarted.
—Mindy Brauer, DAPER Staff