Massachusetts Institute of Technology

THE BASICS:
 
- Score: No. 18 MIT 3, University of Scranton 0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-17)
 
- Records: No. 18 MIT (26-5), Scranton (22-13)
 
- Location: Medford, Mass. (Cousens Gymnasium)
 
- The Lead: Nationally-ranked No. 18 MIT battled the University of Scranton for a 25-21, 25-23, 25-17 victory in the second round of the NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championship Tournament on Friday evening. With the win, the Engineers advance to the regional final for the second year in a row and the sixth time in program history.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
- Set 1: After a tight start, MIT inched out to 16-11 lead courtesy of a serving error. Following its own timeout, Scranton picked up the next two points, but a ball-handling error by the Royals kicked off an 8-3 run by the Engineers as a kill by senior Alyssa Unell (Scottsdale, Ariz.) resulted in set point at 24-16. Scranton rattled off five unanswered points to stay alive, however, a block by Unell and senior Lilly Edwards (Kansas City, Mo.) thwarted the late rally.
 
- Set 2: The Royals used a 6-0 run to go up 8-4 and later used a pair of MIT hitting errors to go up, 15-12. Sparked by back-to-back kills from Unell, the Engineers put together an 8-2 run to reclaim the lead. Scranton replied by winning the next four points as an MIT hitting miscue gave the Royals a 21-20 edge. A kill by junior Consecrata Rozario (Cary, N.C.) evened the set, however, Scranton used a serving error and a kill to move the score to 23-21. The Engineers capitalized on a serving error, a block by Edwards and Rozario, an ace by junior Ashley Margetts (Brownsburg, Ind.), and a kill by Rozario to complete the come-from-behind 25-23 win.
 
- Set 3: MIT jumped out to a 6-2 lead which grew to 13-5 after a kill by Edwards. The Engineers maintained a small cushion for most of the set with another kill from Edwards resulting in match point at 24-16. A kill by the Royals extended the match, however, MIT replied with a kill by Edwards to secure the win.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
 
- Edwards led all players with 15 kills and recorded four blocks, three of which were solo. Rozario produced 11 kills, a .391 hitting performance and three blocks while Unell tallied seven kills on 14 errorless attempts, four blocks, and three aces. Junior Emily Cheng (Sunnyvale, Calif.) dished out 34 assists as Margetts finished with two aces.
 
- Sophomore Ottavia Personeni (Bethesda, Md.) collected a match-high 18 digs, followed by 13 from senior Sofie Kupiec (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and 12 by first-year Daphne Gavros (Tiburon, Calif.).
 
- This was the second meeting between both programs. Scranton defeated MIT, 25-23, 25-23, 28-26, in 2015.
 
UP NEXT:
 
- MIT will play host No. 19 Tufts University in the regional final of the NCAA Tournament on Friday, Nov. 11 at 5:00 p.m.
 
STAY CONNECTED:
 
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