Engineers collect championships and individual awards across the board
MIT finished February on a strong note, leading into the beginning of the season for many other sports
Men’s Basketball (22–5, 10–4 NEWMAC) was outstanding in the NEWMAC playoffs. First, after splitting the regular season series against Babson in a pair of overtime thrillers, the Engineers completed a fiery comeback against the Beavers, led by an assists-points double-double by AJ Jurko ’19. Then, in the championship matchup, Jurko led the Engineers in points, rebounds, and assists, while clutch defense in the final seconds sealed the tense win for MIT, making them back to back NEWMAC champions. The Engineers will face Brockport in the first round of the NCAA Division III tournament.
Women’s Basketball (18–9, 10–6 NEWMAC) took care of business against Springfield in the quarterfinals of the NEWMAC tournament, led by a career-high 26 points for Dolly Yuan ’19. They then utilized an electric performance by Kara Holinski ’19 and clutch offense from the late-game unit to cruise past Smith in the semifinal matchup. The well-balanced performances set up a championship game for the ages, against the WPI Engineers. In a back-and-forth game, the MIT Engineers received positive contributions from their starters and the bench on their way to their first NEWMAC championship; the team will face Marymount in the first round of the NCAA Division III tournament. Holinski was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Men’s Fencing (15–9, 8–2 NEWMAC) put on a strong showing at the New England Intercollegiate Fencing Championship. Sheel Patel ’20 was the center of the headlines, as he took away the individual epee title and became the first Engineer to do so in four years. The epee squad finished third. Meanwhile, Avi Zeff ’20 led the foil squad to a fourth place finish and the sabre squad placed third. The Engineers as a whole repeated their performance from last year and finished second in the championship.
Women’s Fencing (14–12, 9–3 NEWMAC) dominated opponents at the New England Championship and claimed the title for the eighteenth time in program history. The sabre squad ranked fifth, while the foil squad ranked first. The epee squad also finished first and were led by a dazzling performance by Helen Sakharova ’19, who became the first Engineer to win the epee individual time three times.
Men’s Tennis (2–1) dominated at home against Bentley University by winning two out of three doubles matches and five out of six singles matches.
Men’s Swimming and Diving (9–1, 3–0 NEWMAC) notched 1,555 total points on their way to their tenth consecutive NEWMAC championship, and their thirteenth all-time. Bouke Edskes ’20 was adjudged the NEWMAC Men’s Swimmer of the Year award and Samuel Solomon ’20 was named the NEWMAC Men’s Diver of the Year.
Women’s Swimming and Diving (5–5, 3–0 NEWMAC) won the NEWMAC championship for the eighth straight year after putting up 1,314 total points. Blake Zhou ’20 was awarded the NEWMAC Women’s Diver of the Year title.
Squash (16–7) fell to Williams College in a close consolation matchup at the CSA Team Championship. The Engineers completed the season ranked No. 22 in the nation.