Tech Takes Second Place at MIT Quad Tournament

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – With a 2-1 ledger, the Engineers secured second place at the MIT Quad Tournament and also recorded the program’s 14th straight 20-win season on Saturday. The Cardinal and Gray (21-5) opened up play by sweeping Eastern Connecticut State University, 25-16, 25-14, 25-17, before falling to UMass Boston, 25-20, 19-25, 13-25, 25-14, 15-8, in a five-set thriller. MIT bounced back by defeating St. Lawrence University, 25-22, 25-14, 21-25, 25-16. Alex May and Jenny Li represented MIT on the All-Tournament Team.

The Engineers featured a balanced hitting attack against Eastern Connecticut as they put up a .339 team hitting percentage. Li led the way with nine kills as Barden Cleeland posted seven kills and four aces in two sets. Cecily Joujon-Roche notched six kills and two blocks while May, Kelly Schulte, and Trinity Leonard each registered five kills. Alyssa Rothman totaled 35 assists and three aces as Kate Spielbauer collected 13 digs. Anna Dikina bolstered the defense with eight digs while Katrina Ellison added seven of her own.

May tallied 16 kills, six digs, and two aces as Li recorded 16 kills and four blocks versus UMass Boston. Cleeland chipped in four blocks while Ellison racked up seven kills and two blocks. Schulte finished with a team-high five blocks and four aces as Spielbauer paced MIT with 17 digs. Dikina posted seven digs and three aces while Rothman recorded 35 assists and three aces.

In their finale with St. Lawrence, May powered the Engineers with 18 kills and 22 digs to go along with three blocks. Li contributed 12 kills and two blocks as Cleeland compiled eight kills, four blocks, and three aces. Schulte registered 10 kills, five assists, and two blocks while Joujon-Roche tacked on eight kills and two aces. Spielbauer and Dikina both collected 14 digs as Rothman totaled 42 assists and nine digs.