CAMBRIDGE, Mass. –
Sabine Smith totaled 26 kills on 53 attempts to help the No. 9 MIT women's volleyball team rally from a 2-1 deficit in the match to defeat Bowdoin College, 3-2 (25-19, 22-25, 17-25, 25-18, 16-14) in non-conference play on Friday evening at Rockwell Cage.
THE BASICS:
- Score: No. 9 MIT 3, Bowdoin 2 (25-19, 22-25, 17-25, 25-18, 16-14)
- Records: No. 9 MIT (11-1 Overall); Bowdoin (8-5 Overall)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Set 1: MIT never trailed in an opening set victory. A kill from Sabine Smith put the Engineers ahead, 9-4, before Bowdoin scored eight of the next 12 points in the match to make the score 12-11. The score moved to 13-12 MIT before five straight MIT points put the hosts back in command, 18-12. Bowdoin could only trim the lead back to three, 20-17, before MIT earned four consecutive points to take a 24-17 lead. A Bowdoin service error eventually ended the set in MIT's favor, 25-19.
- Set 2: Bowdoin seized control of the second set to tie the match. Kayleigh May set up Eileen Sadati for a kill to pull MIT within one, 8-7, but the Polar Bears scored five straight points to move ahead 13-7. MIT eventually worked the deficit back to just one following a kill by Smith that made the score 18-17 but the Engineers could not rally past Bowdoin as the Polar Bears took the set 25-22.
- Set 3: Bowdoin went up 2-1 in the match with a 25-17 victory in the third set. MIT had an early 9-6 lead before the Polar Bears tied the set for the first time at 9-9. The teams played to three tie scores through the middle of the set, but Bowdoin was once again the team that grabbed control with three consecutive points after an 11-all tie. Now leading 14-11 Bowdoin never trailed for the rest of the set on the way to a 25-17 win.
- Set 4: Trailing for the first time in the match, MIT put together a complete effort in the fourth set to tie the match. MIT registered 15 kills while limiting Bowdoin to eight kills and just an .059 attack percentage. A kill from Smith gave MIT a 19-14 lead. She added three more before the end of a set, including one at 24-18. Sadati had the final word, recording the kill to win the set for MIT, 25-18, and send the match the fifth game.
- Set 5: It looked like the Engineers were going to cruise to the win in the fifth set. Kills from Smith and Sadati and an ace from Adelyn Wyndham helped MIT take a commanding 9-4 lead. However, Bowdoin rallied again, erasing the deficit before eventually moving one point from taking the match, at 14-13. Following an MIT timeout, a Bowdoin service error opened the door for MIT. A Maya Licznerski ace put the Engineers up 15-14. Sadati had the final word as her 14th kill of the evening clinched the 16-14 set win and the match for MIT.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Julia Tolstova produced a team-high 20 digs to go along with 14 kills and three aces while May registered 50 assists and three blocks.
- Jennifer Cen paced the Engineers with six blocks as Sophia Song notched 16 digs and three aces.
- Licznerski ended the night with four aces.
- Alison Smith led Bowdoin with 13 kills while Skye LaMendola had nine kills and three blocks.
- Zoe Ryu and Tamara Gisiger both posted seven kills and chipped in four and three blocks, respectively.
- Cameron Shelly tallied 20 assists, 11 digs, and three aces as Molly Dunn generated 10 assists, nine digs, and four aces.
- Anna Yeh amassed 29 digs while Hannah Woolley collected 10 blocks.
UP NEXT:
- Both teams will be back in action on Saturday, October 3. MIT will host No. 2 Colby College at 3:30 PM while Bowdoin will travel to NESCAC foe Williams College for a 2:00 PM match.
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