THE BASICS:
 
- Score: No. 19 MIT 3, U.S. Coast Guard Academy 2 (26-28, 25-17, 21-25, 25-23, 15-9)
 
- Records: MIT (24-3, 9-1 NEWMAC); Coast Guard (16-7, 7-3 NEWMAC)
 
- Location: New London, Conn. (Roland Hall)
 
- The Lead: In the regular-season NEWMAC women's volleyball finale for both teams, nationally-ranked No. 19 MIT emerged with a 26-28, 25-17, 21-25, 25-23, 15-9 victory over the U.S. Coast Guard Academy on Saturday.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
- Set 1: Coast Guard capitalized on two MIT miscues and three kills to take a 9-4 lead. The Bears maintained a small cushion until a block by sophomore Emily Cheng (Sunnyvale, Calif.) and senior Annie Bryan (Kirkwood, Mo.) in addition to a kill by first-year Ella Gragg (Morganton, N.C.) put the Engineers in front, 24-23. An MIT serving error kicked off an exchange of points as an ace gave Coast Guard a 26-25 edge. A kill by Cheng evened the score, but the Bears replied with back-to-back kills to clinch the 28-26 win.
 
- Set 2: The Engineers jumped out to an 8-3 advantage following a ball-handling error by the hosts. The Bears stayed close for most of the set as a kill brought it within 18-16. After an MIT timeout, the Engineers finished off the frame with a 7-1 run.
 
- Set 3: MIT inched out to a 5-3 lead, but Coast Guard mounted an 8-2 run that put it ahead for good. The Engineers battled back, closing the gap to 19-18 courtesy of a hitting error. The Bears won the next three points, however, MIT cut the deficit to 22-20 on a kill by sophomore Consecrata Rozario (Cary, N.C.) and a Coast Guard hitting error. After trading points, the Bears used a kill and a block to capture the 25-21 win.
 
- Set 4: The set was a back-and-forth battle as there were eight ties and two lead changes. Knotted at 18, a kill by Bryan sparked a 6-1 run that featured back-to-back aces from Cheng. The Bears extended the frame by recording the next four points. However, the comeback attempt was thwarted due to a serving error as the Engineers held on for the 25-23 victory.
 
- Set 5: MIT raced out to a 10-2 advantage after a kill by junior Lilly Edwards (Kansas City, Mo.). Despite the deficit Coast Guard continued to attack, using a block to bring it within 12-8. After trading sideouts, a serving error coupled with a Gragg kill wrapped up the match for the Engineers.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
 
- Edwards paced MIT with 14 kills to go along with three blocks as Bryan registered 13 kills and five blocks. Gragg finished with 13 kills and three aces.
 
- Sophomore Emily Cheng (Sunnyvale, Calif.) tallied 44 assists, nine digs, and three aces while classmate Allison Brattley (Fleetwood, Pa.) produced four blocks.
 
- First-year Ottavia Personeni (Bethesda, Md.) amassed a match-high 33 digs, followed by 12 from junior Sophie Kupiec (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and 10 by sophomore Ashley Margetts (Brownsburg, Ind.). Personeni also chipped in two aces.
 
UP NEXT:
 
- MIT will be the No. 2 seed in the NEWMAC Tournament and will host No. 7 Smith College in a quarterfinal match on Tuesday, Nov. 2 at 7:00 p.m.
 
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