THE BASICS:
 
- Score: No. 18 MIT 3, Wheaton College 0 (25-11, 25-13, 25-20)
 
- Records: MIT (21-1, 8-0 NEWMAC); Wheaton (13-8, 2-6 NEWMAC)
 
- Location: Cambridge, Mass. (Rockwell Cage)
 
- The Lead: The nationally-ranked No. 18 MIT women's volleyball team improved to 21-1 on the year and 8-0 in NEWMAC play after defeating conference foe Wheaton College, 25-11, 25-13, 25-20, on Tuesday night.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
- Set 1: After a close start to the set, MIT gradually pulled away but a kill by Adara Hamilton narrowed the gap to 10-6. The Engineers replied with a kill from first-year Ella Gragg (Morganton, N.C.) as they went on to outscore the Lyons, 15-5, to wrap up the set.
 
- Set 2: Tied at two, a strong serving run by junior Alyssa Unell (Scottsdale, Ariz.) that featured three aces, gave MIT a 9-2 advantage. Kills by Bailey Madrzyk and Emily Hickey kept Wheaton close, however, the Engineers responded with an 11-1 run en route to a 25-13 win.
 
- Set 3: The Lyons built a 3-1 edge courtesy of Hamilton's ace but MIT put together a 5-1 spurt to go ahead for good. The Engineers maintained a slim margin until a 7-2 run resulted in a 17-11 lead. Wheaton countered with a 5-1 burst, capped by an ace from Annah Shaheen. MIT claimed the next four points to go up 22-16. The Lyons capitalized on a pair of hitting errors and a block by Madrzyk and Hannah George to cut the deficit in half. The Engineers used a kill from sophomore Consecrata Rozario (Cary, N.C.) and a block by Gragg and Rozario to reach match point. An MIT hitting error kept Wheaton alive, however, a kill by Gragg clinched the 25-20 victory.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
 
- MIT senior Annie Bryan (Kirkwood, Mo.) produced a match-high 11 kills on 13-errorless attempts for a .845 hitting percentage while Gragg finished with nine kills.
 
- Junior Emma Suh (Santa Monica, Calif.) amassed five aces as Unell earned four aces for the Engineers.
 
- Sophomore Emily Cheng (Sunnyvale, Calif.) tallied 31 assists and nine digs while junior Sofie Kupiec (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) also posted nine digs. First-year Ottavia Personeni (Bethesda, Md.) bolstered MIT's defense with eight digs.
 
- Madrzyk paced Wheaton with five kills while Sophie Wilhelm led all players with 14 digs.
 
- George generated nine assists, three blocks and two aces as Isabel Coca chipped in eight digs.
 
UP NEXT:
 
- MIT travels to Williams College this weekend for the New England Challenge. The Engineers will play No. 24 Tufts University on Friday, Oct. 22 at 7:00 p.m. and then take on Middlebury College (11:00 a.m.) and the host Ephs (3:30 p.m.) the following day. Wheaton, meanwhile, will conclude its road trip on Saturday, Oct. 23 with a tri-match at Eastern Connecticut State University. The Lyons will face Plymouth State University at 2:00 p.m. and then square off with the Warriors at 4:00 p.m.
 
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