CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The No. 7 MIT women's volleyball team kicked off the two-day New England Challenge by defeating Williams College, 25-13, 25-13, 21-25, 25-17, on Friday night in Rockwell Cage.
Sabine Smith had match-high honors with 20 kills, while
Kayleigh May tallied 49 assists and
Sophia Song had 25 digs for the Engineers.
THE BASICS:
- Score: No. 7 MIT 3, Williams 1 (25-13, 25-13, 21-25, 25-17)
- Records: No. 7 MIT (16-3 Overall); Williams (11-8 Overall)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Set 1: Knotted at 11, a serving error sparked a 14-2 set-ending run for MIT. Three of the last four points for the Engineers, including set point, were aces by Smith.
- Set 2: The Ephs took an early 3-0 lead, but it would not last long as MIT came back with six unanswered points and then used an 8-1 run to go up 15-8. The Engineers maintained a comfortable cushion as they went on to win the set by another 25-13 margin. Smith produced six kills, followed by four from Eileen Sadati while May had 13 assists in the frame.
- Set 3: Williams jumped out to a 5-1 lead which later grew to 11-5 courtesy of a hitting error. MIT battled back, tying the set three times, the last at 17-17 on a kill from Julia Tolstova. A solo block by Elsa Miller led to a 4-1 burst that created some breathing room for the Ephs. A kill from Smith kicked off a brief exchange of points that moved the score to 23-21. However, Williams used a block by Kate Lane and Lilly Fox and then an ace by Lane to secure the victory.
- Set 4: After a back-and-forth beginning to the set, a kill from Tolstova ignited a 13-2 run that resulted in a 17-6 advantage. Despite the deficit the Ephs continued to attack, and they fought off match point twice, but a kill from Sarah Hutchinson clinched the 25-17 win.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Sadati finished with 12 kills as Tolstova produced 10 kills and seven digs.
- Smith added eight digs and four aces while Jennifer Cen registered seven kills and four blocks.
- Obi notched nine kills and three blocks as Lane tallied eight kills, seven digs, and two blocks.
- Eve Kaplan had 13 digs while Morgan Daetz recorded 16 assists and 10 digs.
- Miller ended the night with three blocks.
UP NEXT:
- Both teams return to action on Saturday, October 24 to close out the New England Challenge.
- The Engineers will face Middlebury College at 11:00 AM followed by Tufts University at 3:30 PM.
- The Ephs, meanwhile, will take on Springfield College at 11:00 AM and No. 25 Babson College at 3:30 PM.
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