Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Bates College volleyball dropped its final two matches at the MIT Invitational, falling to host MIT, 3-0, and to DeSales University, 3-1, on Saturday afternoon at the Rockwell Cage.
The Bobcats (5-3) challenged the home-standing Engineers (11-1) in the first set before conceding a 3-0 (27-25, 25-17, 25-21) decision in the team's morning match. In their second contest of the day, Bates won set two and pushed the Bulldogs (10-3) in the fourth frame in an eventual 3-1 (25-14, 23-25, 25-11, 26-24) setback.
Next, Bates opens NESCAC play at Hamilton on Sept. 19 at 8 p.m.
Match 1: MIT 3, Bates 0 (27-25, 25-17, 25-21)
Four Bobcats registered at least five kills, but Bates fell to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 3-0 (27-25, 25-17, 25-21), in the team's third match of the tournament.
Sophomore Chandler McGrath (Seal Beach, Calif.) paced the Bobcats with seven kills and 13 digs while junior Abby Leberman (Concord, N.H.) posted six kills. Junior Laryssa Schepel (Flemington, N.J.) tallied 12 digs, and first-year Jacqueline Forney (Bloomington, Ind.) dished out 15 assists.
For the Engineers, Megan Gebhard led all players with 19 kills, Nicole Gagnier handed out a match-high 41 assists, and Tori Wuthrich had 11 digs.
Neither team held a larger than three points in set one, but the Engineers pulled out a 27-25 win in extra points. Bates took a late lead at 22-21 and tied the set at 23, 24, and 25, but MIT won the frame's final two points.
The Engineers jumped out to a 13-5 advantage in the second set and built a lead as large as 10 points – at 20-10 and 21-11 – on their way to a 25-17 victory in set two.
In the final game, Bates held a 20-18 lead late in the set, but MIT finished the set on a 7-1 run to claim the final frame, 25-21.
Match 2: DeSales 3, Bates 1 (25-14, 23-25, 25-11, 26-24)
Junior Mary Deneen (Windsor, Conn.) led Bates with nine kills, but Bates fell to DeSales, 3-1 (25-14, 23-25, 25-11, 26-24), in the squad's fourth and final match at the MIT Invitational.
Junior Brynn Wendel (Boxford, Mass.) notched seven kills while McGrath registered 10 digs and six kills.
Schepel contributed 15 digs, and seniors Tess Walther (Santa Monica, Calif.) and Miranda Shapiro (New York, N.Y.) distributed 19 and 11 assists respectively.
The Bobcats registered 11 kills as a team in their second-set win, 10 kills as a side in the first frame, and nine kills as a squad in their 26-24 overtime loss in the fourth game.
DeSales went 3-1 at the event with wins over Bates, Colby College (3-1), and Springfield College (3-0) in addition to a loss against Tufts University (3-2).
