THE BASICS:
 
- Score: No. 18 MIT 3, Susquehanna University 1 (25-19, 27-25, 22-25, 25-20)
 
- Records: MIT (29-3); Susquehanna (24-7)
 
- Location: Cambridge, Mass. (Rockwell Cage)
 
- The Lead: Nationally-ranked No. 18 MIT battled Susquehanna University for a 25-19, 27-25, 22-25, 25-20 victory in the final of the NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Tournament Cambridge, Massachusetts Regional on Sunday. The Engineers earned a spot in the quarterfinals which will be held on Thursday, Nov. 18 at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
- Set 1: MIT inched out to a 10-6 lead but Susquehanna picked up three of the next four points, as a ball-handling error brought it within 11-9. The Engineers replied with a kill from sophomore Consecrata Rozario (Cary, N.C.) which sparked an 8-2 run. MIT maintained a small cushion down the stretch as it won the set, 25-19, on another Rozario kill.
 
- Set 2: The second set featured 14 ties and five lead changes. A serving error gave the Engineers set point at 24-23. The River Hawks capitalized on an MIT serving error and an ace by Rosina Esposito to go back in front. Following their own timeout, the Engineers used a block by Rozario and sophomore Emily Cheng (Sunnyvale, Calif.), a Susquehanna hitting error, and a Rozario kill to capture the 27-25 victory.
 
- Set 3: The close play continued into the third set as there were 12 ties and six lead changes. Trailing 22-19, a block by Brooke Lacesa and Kody Dillon sparked a string of six unanswered points as a kill from Riley O'Dowd clinched the come-from-behind win for the River Hawks.
 
- Set 4: After a tight start to the set, MIT used back-to-back kills by senior Annie Bryan (Kirkwood, Mo.) to establish a 15-8 advantage. An exchange of points ensued until a kill by senior Nikasha Patel (Paradise Valley, Ariz.) and a Susquehanna hitting error gave the Engineers a 21-12 lead. Starting with a kill from O'Dowd and a block by O'Dowd and Dillon, the River Hawks put together a four-point spurt. A miscue by Susquehanna resulted in both teams trading points as kill by junior Lilly Edwards (Kansas City, Mo.) gave MIT match point at 24-18. Back-to-back kills by Esposito kept the River Hawks alive, however, a kill by Edwards won the match.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
 
- Bryan finished with a match-high 18 kills to go along with a .424 hitting percentage and six blocks. Edwards posted 10 kills followed by eight from Rozario.
 
- First-year Ottavia Personeni (Bethesda, Md.) amassed 26 digs while sophomore Ashley Margetts (Brownsburg, Ind.) collected 21 of her own. Junior Sofie Kupiec (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) rounded out the Engineers with 14 digs and two aces.
 
- Cheng compiled 47 assists, 12 digs, and two blocks.
 
- O'Dowd produced 13 kills and four blocks as Dillon notched 12 kills and six blocks. Esposito tallied 11 kills, eight digs, three blocks, and four aces for Susquehanna.
 
- Lizzie Herestofa led all players with 27 digs while Keira Roach generated 33 assists, 12 digs, and two aces.
 
- This was the fifth time in program history MIT has advanced to the regional final. The Engineers will be making their first appearance in the national quarterfinals since they were the national runner-up in 1984 and a semifinalist in 1983.
 
- Susquehanna advanced to the regional final for the first time in program history in their third appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
 
Cambridge, Mass. Regional All-Tournament Team
Dina Kosyagin, Haverford College
Cori Gray, Bowdoin College
Kody Dillon, Susquehanna University
Rosina Esposito, Susquehanna University
Ottavia Personeni, MIT
Annie Bryan, MIT
 
Tournament Most Outstanding Player: Emily Cheng, MIT
 
UP NEXT:
 
- MIT will be the No. 8 seed in the quarterfinals and will face top seed and nationally-ranked No. 7 Juniata College on Thursday, Nov. 18 at 1:30 p.m. EST at Washington University in St. Louis, Mo.
 
STAY CONNECTED:
 
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