CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – No. 7 women's volleyball opened the MIT Invitational by defeating Brandeis University, 26-24, 25-12, 23-25, 25-20, on Friday night.
Julia Tolstova led all players with 16 kills and six aces while adding eight digs for the Engineers as Kennedy Hilson powered the Judges with 10 kills, a .346 hitting performance, and a match-high five blocks.
THE BASICS:
- Score: No. 7 MIT 3, Brandeis 1 (26-24, 25-12, 23-25, 25-20)
- Records: No. 7 MIT (4-0 Overall); Brandeis (2-3 Overall)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Set 1: MIT slowly built a 10-6 lead after a kill by Tolstova, but Brandeis put together a 10-3 run that was capped by an ace from Camila Valenzuela. The Engineers remained within striking distance until a kill by Jennifer Cen gave them a 21-18 edge. An exchange of points ensued as Tolstova's kill gave MIT set point at 24-21. The Judges capitalized on kills by Hilson and Alexa Ho along with a hitting error to quickly tie the score. The Engineers then used a serving error and an ace by Tolstova to secure the 26-24 win.
- Set 2: MIT rattled off eight unanswered points to establish a 13-5 advantage en route to a 25-12 victory.
- Set 3: After a tight start, the third set featured a series of runs. Knotted at 9-9, Brandeis generated a 5-1 burst as Hilson produced two assisted blocks, one solo block, and a kill following a serving error by the hosts. The Engineers countered with an 8-1 run as Eileen Sadati's kill gave them an 18-15 lead. The Judges replied with a 9-2 run as Madison Haft-Abromovitch's kill resulted in set point at 24-20. Two kills from Tolstova and a hitting error kept MIT alive, but a serving error thwarted the comeback attempt.
- Set 4: Brandeis inched out to a 7-3 lead courtesy of another Valenzuela ace. The Engineers battled back, eventually going up 10-8 after Cen's kill. The frame then became a back-and-forth affair as there were two lead changes and six ties, the last at 17-17 on an MIT serving error. The Engineers then used a Tolstova kill and two hitting errors to create some breathing room, however, Brandeis used a serving error and a Haft-Abromovitch kill to narrow the gap to 20-19. This was as close as it would get as a kill from Tolstova kicked off a 5-1 matching-ending run.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Cen ended the night with nine kills, a .450 hitting percentage and three blocks while Brennan Fritts tallied nine kills, 11 digs, and two blocks.
- Kayleigh May registered 45 assists, 12 digs, and three blocks.
- Sophia Song collected 14 digs as Miller Grimes added four blocks.
- Haft-Abromovitch finished with nine kills while Ava Ferrigno amassed 19 digs.
- Ho posted 15 assists and 12 digs as Valenzuela notched nine assists and three aces.
- Taylor Lewis and Olivia Nirode both recorded 11 digs while Talia Celotta contributed four blocks.
UP NEXT:
- Both teams return to action on Saturday, September 12 to close out the MIT Invitational.
- The Engineers will face Maine Maritime Academy at 11:00 AM followed by University of Scranton at 3:00 PM.
- The Judges, meanwhile, will take on Scranton at 11:00 AM and Maine Maritime at 3:00 PM.
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