Jen Williams talks team culture, a coach’s life
In the final segment of ‘Coach focus’, softball head coach Jen Williams talks about efforts made by her coaching staff to build team culture, challenges faced by coaches at MIT, and how to evaluate success in a process-driven program.
Jen Williams discusses MIT softball’s road to success
MIT softball had its most successful season in program history last season in which they finished fifth in the Division III College World Series (WS).
Men’s volleyball off to flying start
Men’s volleyball (4-0) maintained its perfect start to the season after clinching a 5-set thriller against Regis. Martin Krasuki ’17 led the team with 18 kills.
A week of wins for MIT teams
Men’s basketball (11-3) rode a second half surge to defeat Springfield 78-59. AJ Jurko ’19 led the team with 24 points.
Swimming and diving see wins
Men’s basketball(10-3) defeated Fitchburg State 84-59. Cameron Korb ’19 led the Engineers with 23 points.
Fall season sails in to success
MIT sailing capped off a memorable fall season with its first ever Atlantic Coast Championship victory. Skipper Ty Ingram ’18 and crew Sameena Shaffeeullah ’19 finished 2nd in division A while the team of Paige Omura ’17 and Trevor Long ’18 led the standings in division B to ensure the Engineers finished ahead of 2nd placed Tufts.
Basketball sees success this week
Men’s basketball (3-2) defeated UMass Boston 84-61. Samuel Bockman ’19 led the Engineers with 23 points and 6 assists.
Strong showing by women’s and men’s cross country teams at national championship
Women’s cross country finished fifth overall at the NCAA division III cross country championship. Megan McCandless ’20 led the Engineers with a 17th place finish out of 280 participants.
A look back at women’s volleyball’s banner season
MIT women’s volleyball team capped a dominant season in which it posted a perfect 10-0 record in conference play with a New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) championship victory. This was the fifth time in program history that the Engineers clinched the championship and the first since 2012.
Forwards headline record-breaking season for women’s soccer
The MIT women’s soccer team closed out a record-breaking season with 1-0 loss to Middlebury College in the first round of the NCAA playoffs. The Engineers recorded a program-high 17 victories this season, scoring in all but the first and last games of the season. MIT finished runners-up in the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) tournament after tying for first place in the regular season.
Co-ed sailing clinches Atlantic Coast championship
Coed sailing won the Atlantic Coast championship for the first time in program history. Ty Ingram ’18 and Sameena Shaffeeullah ’19 placed second in division A while Paige Omura ’17 and Trevor Long ’19 clinched top spot in division B.
McCandless ’20 is NEWMAC runner of the year
Megan McCandless ’20 has made a tremendous start to her career as a student-athlete at MIT. She led a group of five Engineers who swept the top five positions in the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) cross country championship, earning her both the NEWMAC rookie and runner of the year accolades.
Several teams see NEWMAC wins
Women's soccer lost to hosts WPI 3-1 in the NEWMAC championship final. Allie Werner '20 helped half WPI's lead before the hosts scored a third to thwart MIT's comeback.
Sports Blitz
Women’s soccer advanced to the semifinals of the NEWMAC tournament with a 1-0 win over Wellesley. Allie Werner ’20 scored the solitary goal for the Engineers.
Margaret Guo ’16 named NCAA woman of the year
Here, we hear from Guo herself, from her immediate reactions on winning the award to reflections on what it took to sustain an elite level of performance for four years. UROP supervisors, swimming coach, and teammates chime in on what made Margaret Guo simply marvellous.
Field hockey looking to carry regular season form into playoffs
Field hockey (11-3, 6-1 in conference) has played lights out for the most past this season as it sits a solitary game back of conference-leading Babson College.
Sports Blitz
Women’s soccer (13-4) put 7 past Smith in a 7-2 rout. Chessa Hoekstra ’20 scored twice for the Engineers.
Sports Blitz
Women’s soccer (12-4) came from behind to defeat Wellesley 2-1. Allie Werner ’20 scored the matchwinner, her first goal as an Engineer, with fewerthan seven minutes to play in regulation after Montana Reilly ’20 had equalized just after halftime.
Successful week for MIT sports
Women's soccer (10-3) won a tight contest away at Wheaton College. Jacqueline Simmons '18 scored from a penalty kick as the Engineers extended their winning streak to six while completing their fifth straight shutout.
Lauren Ullmann ’17 talks soccer and support systems
Ullmann spoke about the incredible support system that the women’s soccer team has always provided, how the team tries to play its best on the field when the firehose is at its fiercest off the field, and her evolution as a leader, teammate, and friend both on and off the pitch.
Rakocevic ’20 impresses at ITA regional meet
Not only was Lara Rakocevic the Engineer’s top performer in singles, she was also the only player from the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) to reach the final eight.
Sports Blitz
Football (1-3) claimed its first win of the season away at Maine Maritime 30-13. QB Udgam Goyal ’19 went 13-21, 229 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT. WR Eddie Garcia-Montes ’19 had 170 receiving yards with a TD.
Sports Blitz
Women’s soccer (5-3) defeated Salem State 4-1 as Claire O’Callaghan ’20 came off the bench and scored twice in a space of 160s.
Sports Blitz
Men’s soccer (4-1) defeated Emerson College 1-0 following a strike from Gregory Hui ’18 in overtime.
Austin Filiere ’18 shines in Cape Cod Baseball League
For Austin Filiere ’18, the summer was an opportunity to match his wits against pitchers from Division I schools in the Cape Cod Baseball League.
Sports Blitz
Women’s field hockey (2-0) started its campaign with victories over Simmons and U. Mass. Dartmouth. Emily Penn ’18 scored a hattrick in MIT’s 4-1 victory over Dartmouth.
MIT alumni emerge from the firehose with Olympic dreams intact
Michael A. Nackoul ’13 and Veronica Toro ’16 open up about not letting the firehose deter them from chasing their Olympic dream.
Alumna wins cycling's elite national championship
Christina Birch PhD ’15 won her maiden elite national title when she clinched first place at the women’s individual pursuit race at the USA cycling elite national championships held at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center in Trexlertown, PA.
Q&A with DAPER director Julie Soriero
Soriero spoke about how DAPER is always trying to provide the right environment for MIT student-athletes to thrive, how the coaches try to attract the best talent, the culture of appreciation or lack thereof of student-athletes’ achievements, what DAPER does to incentivize club and IM sports, and what it means to her to have been awarded the Athletics Director’s Award for the year 2014-15.
Four-time national champion Cimran Virdi ’16 reflects on amazing 4 years at MIT
In this commencement edition, we feature a sensational senior who has four individual national titles to her credit and has literally jumped higher than any female athlete in division III history. Cimran Virdi ’16 gives us a glimpse of what it takes to be an elite student-athlete at MIT.
Softball to head to College World Series
Softball is headed to its first College World Series appearance (NCAA Final 8 to be held in Salem, VA) after defeating WPI 2-0 in a best-of-three series in the NCAA Super Regional championship.
Alexandra Marshall '16 talks pitching, statistics and teamwork
Marshall holds the school record for most strikeouts in program history. She talks about scouting opponents, reliance on data, battling Type I diabetes, and reveals her favorite pitcher and the baseball team she roots for in this interview with The Tech.
Cycling clinches conference championship
The MIT cycling club capped off its road regular season by clinching the Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference Championships (Easterns) held on the weekend of April 23-24 at Warwick and Turners Falls, MA.
What does it take to run the Boston Marathon?
The Tech spoke to three students and a Nobel Laureate professor following their successful completions of this year’s Boston Marathon.
Cycling team overcomes odds to win at Shippensburg
The MIT cycling team placed first overall at the Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference (ECCC) Shippensburg Scurry race with contributions from each of its seven team members.
Douglas A. Kogut ‘18 wins 200-fly national title at NCAA meet
Douglas A. Kogut ’18 won the 200-fly individual title at the recently-concluded NCAA Division III national meet, thereby becoming the first student athlete from MIT to win a title in that category and fourth to win an individual event at the national meet. His time of 1:47:28 was both a personal and a school record and he clinched it when the spotlight shone brightest. He was also part of the 400-free relay team that won silver.
Alumni have summitted the highest points of every North American country
Scaling new heights or overcoming the insurmountable have become cliches associated with the achievements of MIT students. But for Matthew and Eric Gilbertson (both PhD ’14) those phrases apply almost literally. In just over five years the twin brothers have scaled the highest peaks of every single country (23 to be exact) in North America. In an interview with The Tech, they reflected on their incredible journey — from the hours of careful planning, to treading surreptitiously on the edge of perilous cliffs, to the sheer exhilaration of reaching the summit and the realization that they are the only breathing human beings in a quarter-mile radius with nothing but tranquility and snow for company.
Julia Sharpe ’09, William White ’17 shine in gymnastics meet
The MIT Gymnastics Club hosted its annual alumni meet shortly before spring break. William L. White ’17 clinched top spot overall in the men’s category with victories in the floor and vault in addition to second place finishes in pommel horse and parallel bars and third place in rings and high bars. MIT alumni Nate Sharp ’09 and Julia Sharpe ’09 made up the top three. Ben Rudolph of Cambridge Community Gymnastics won first place in rings, pommel horse, parallel bars and high bars.
Curling clinches bronze at collegiate nationals
The MIT curling team clinched bronze at the Curling Collegiate National Championship held at Chaska, MN from March 11 to 13. The Engineers comprehensively outplayed Nebraska, ending with a score of 12-4 to secure their second third-place finish in as many years at the nationals.
A look back at Peyton Manning’s career
Two-time Super Bowl champion and five-time league MVP Peyton Manning announced his retirement March 7, following an 18-year career with the NFL, including 14 years with the Indianapolis Colts and four years with the Denver Broncos. Manning’s decision to retire comes just a month after he guided the Denver Broncos to victory in Super Bowl 50.
Arinze Okeke on long jumping and what it takes to win
Arinze C. Okeke ’18 won individual golds in the triple and long jumps at the recently-concluded New England Division III Indoor Championships and is in line to represent MIT at the NCAA Division III national meet. Okeke has taken major strides since entering the track scene in his high school days. Now he has set his sight on a first-place finish at the national meet.
Sports blitz: wins, losses, and season wrap-ups
The squash team went 1-2 at the College Squash Association (CSA) national team championship. MIT defeated Bucknell but suffered losses to Stanford and Hamilton.
Championship weekend preview: what to expect
Brace yourself! It is the championship weekend for winter sports. MIT swimming and diving (men and women), track and field (men and women), fencing (men and women), and squash teams will battle for regional or conference titles starting February 18. Here we include a snapshot of what to expect and where you can catch all the action.
Van der Hoop takes fifth at cyclo-cross nationals
Julie van der Hoop G and Corey Tucker G finished 5th and 22nd, respectively, at the recently-concluded Collegiate Cycling Cyclo-cross National Championship held at Asheville, North Carolina.
Sports Blitz
Men’s volleyball won in straight sets against Emerson to reach 10-3 on the season. Martin Krasuski ’17 and Matt Riley ’19 had 15 and 12 kills respectively.
Manning-Brady XVII: The next chapter of an epic rivalry
The New England Patriots have seen off the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Denver Broncos have overcome the Pittsburgh Steelers, setting up the second AFC Championship match between the Patriots and the Broncos in three seasons. With a trip to Super Bowl 50 on the line it is hard to imagine any subplots overshadowing the ultimate prize, but the Manning-Brady rivalry is not just any rivalry. When the final chapters of their hall-of-fame careers have been played out, they will be remembered as two of the greatest ever to have played their positions.
Red Sox pay price to sign David Price
Following back-to-back seasons of last-place finishes in the American League (AL) East, the Red Sox splashed the cash early in the offseason, signing free agent David Price to a record-breaking 7-year, $217 million deal. This deal makes the left-handed ace the highest paid pitcher in the history of major league baseball and the first pitcher with a ‘one million dollar per start’ price tag.
Semester review: student athletes shine in fall 2015
This time last year, the MIT football team was the talk of the town. Following an unbeaten 9-0 regular season and a thrilling NCAA playoff victory in overtime, the Engineers hogged all the limelight and deservedly so. But just in case if you were wondering if Fall 2015 has been a quieter season for MIT sports, here is what you might have missed.
October’s MIT player of the month Megan E. Gebhard ’17 discusses volleyball, Halloween
The women’s volleyball team has an enviable 26-2 record overall this season as it seeks a second straight New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) regular-season title and a chance to host the playoff tournament. A big reason for its dominance is star outside-hitter, Megan E. Gebhard ’17. Gebhard, who made the NEWMAC all-conference first team last year, leads the team in kills, averaging above 4 per set. The Tech’s player of the month for October told us about team spirit, this year’s goals, and beach volleyball at Google.
September's player of the month: Sean Bingham '16
The MIT men’s soccer team is off to hot start this season (6-1, 2-0 in conference) thanks to their premier center forward Sean Bingham ’16. Bingham has found the back of the net a team-leading eight times and has the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) regular season title in his sights. Bingham ’16, a former NEWMAC athlete of the year, is September’s player of the month.
Q&A with MIT football coach
It was not that long ago that the MIT football team followed a 1-8 season (2010) with a 2-7 season (2011). Since then, the Engineers enjoyed their first winning season (5-4 in 2012) and followed it with a program-record 6-win season in 2013. The rest as we know is history. MIT finished 9-0 in the regular season en route to clinching the New England Football Conference (NEFC) and defeated Husson College to win its maiden NCAA playoff game. As the defending champions seek to extend their dominance, The Tech caught up with the mastermind who oversaw the emergence of the MIT football team as a NEFC powerhouse, head coach, Chad Martinovich. Coach Martinovich talked about challenges of recruitment, “life-scheduling”, and an incredible story of how perseverance prevailed in one of the most crucial moments of the season.
Men’s crew races at Royal Henley Regatta
MIT Men’s Lightweight Crew recently competed at the internationally-renowned Royal Henley Regatta in England. The regatta, which dates back to 1839, plays host to participants from across the globe, including Olympic champions. This was the first time in six years that a team from MIT’s rowing program was represented at this prestigious event.
US Women’s World Cup team wins championship
Carli Lloyd scored the fastest hat-trick in Women’s World Cup history to lead the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team (USWNT) to its third world cup triumph — its first since 1999. Lloyd’s hat-trick, the first one in a world cup final, took just sixteen minutes as the U.S. defeated Japan 5-2 and exacted revenge for their defeat at the world cup final four years ago.
A year of many firsts for MIT sports
From the football team scoring a last-minute field goal on the way to their first ever NCAA playoff victory, to the women’s lacrosse team erasing a five goal deficit in the last twelve minutes and clinching their maiden New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Championship, to breaking a pole vault record at the New England Division III Track and Field Championship, MIT student athletes scaled new heights (pun intended) in the 2014-15 year. While some usual suspects continued their domination — like the men’s tennis team winning their 17th consecutive NEWMAC title — there were a number of new frontiers reached this season. Here we take a look back at some of the ‘firsts’ for MIT sports.
MIT Cheer travels to Florida to perform at national meet
The MIT cheerleading team had their best performance in program history at the National Cheerleaders Association (NCA) Collegiate Cheer and Dance Competition held in Daytona, Florida. “Considering we didn’t have a coaching staff three years ago, I would say we have improved leaps and bounds,” said Elizabeth Mule ’17, who has been a cheerleader since seventh grade. MIT Cheer, as they are popularly known, performed a regular cheer along with a two-and-a-half-minute routine that included stunts, dancing, and tumbling.
Cycling team wins conference
The MIT cycling team clinched the Division II Omnium in the Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference (ECCC) road season that concluded with the conference championships held on April 25–26. Jen Wilson G (3rd in Women’s A), Emma Edwards G (2nd in Women’s B), Julie van der Hoop G (3rd in Women’s B), and Philip Kreycik G (3rd in Men’s C) earned individual honors. The cycling team will compete in the National Championships to be held in Asheville, North Carolina, on the coming weekend.
Women’s lacrosse wins its 1st NEWMAC title
The MIT women’s lacrosse team clinched their first-ever New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Championship this weekend with a come-from-behind 11-10 victory over Springfield. MIT battled back from a 10-5 deficit to earn a direct entry to the NCAA playoffs where they will face Regis on Saturday, May 9.
MIT students compete in the Boston Marathon
Running 26.2 miles at a stretch can be challenging. Doing it over a course that literally contains a Heartbreak Hill in cold and rainy weather might seem impossible. But graduate students Roy Wedge, Georgia Lagoudas, and Daniel Rothenberg did just that last week. Following their successful completion of the Boston Marathon, The Tech caught up with them as they shared how they went from desperately seeking a running trail during Boston’s coldest winter to crossing the finish line at Copley Square on Marathon Monday.
Patriots season to begin vs. Steelers
Super Bowl XLIX champions New England Patriots will begin their title defense against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sept. 10 to kick off the 2015 NFL season.
April’s Player of the Month: Maryann Gong ’17
The Tech’s April Player of the Month is Maryann Gong ’17. Gong was recently named the NCAA Division III Women’s Track Athlete of the Year by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. She won the 3000m race at the national meet to go along with a third place finish in the mile race and helped her team clinch second in the relay. She was also instrumental in leading the women’s track and field team to victory in the Division III regional meet.
Can the Red Sox rebound in 2015?
After a forgettable first-to-worst season in 2014, the Red Sox are looking to bounce back for the second time in three years. After finishing with the highest slugging percentage in 2013, the Red Sox finished 14th in the 15-team American League in that same category. Quite simply, the bats that came alive the year before were largely quiet either due to injury (Pedroia, Napoli, Victorino) or were downright unproductive for large parts of the season (Boagerts, Nava, Gomes).
Figure skating ends term with showcase
The MIT Figure Skating club hosted their annual figure skating exhibition this past Saturday, March 14, at the Johnson Athletic Center Ice Arena. This season-ending exhibition event witnessed a number of alumni performing alongside the current MIT figure skating team.
Gymnastics club hosts invitational
The MIT Gymnastics Club hosted the Alumni Invitational Gymnastics Meet on Saturday, March 14, at the DuPont Gymnasium at MIT.
Sabrina Drammis leads MIT to its best finish in 12 years
Starting this month, The Tech is launching a new “Player of the Month” feature profiling one of MIT’s premier athletes from across varsity and club teams. Kicking off the series is women’s basketball sensation, Sarbina Drammis ’16.
White clinches top spot
William White ’17 finished in the top three in each of the six men’s events (floor, pommel horse, rings, vault, parallel bars, high bar), taking the top spot in the floor event en route to clinching first position overall in the 2015 Beaver Classic Gymnastics Meet held at the duPont Gymnasium on Sunday, Feb. 22.
Djokovic wins the Australian Open
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic clinched his fifth Australian Open title on Sunday, defeating Andy Murray 7-6 (7-5), 6-7 (4-7), 6-3, 6-0. What looked destined for a close contest got lopsided from the third set on as Andy Murray lost the plot to lose his fourth final at the Australian Open.
New England Patriots clinch Super Bowl XLIX
Tom Brady threw for 328 yards including 4 touchdown passes to 4 different receivers to lead the Patriots to an epic 28-24 victory over the reigning champions, the Seattle Seahawks. While Brady was instrumental in helping the Pats overcome a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter, the game-clinching play belonged to undrafted rookie Malcolm Butler.
Carlsen is still World Champion Dominant opening helps Carlsen win
Norwegian Grandmaster Magnus Carlsen retained his World Chess Championship crown after seeing off Vishwanathan Anand of India, 6.5 — 4.5 in a rematch of last year’s World Championship. In 2013, Carlsen had comprehensively beaten Anand, winning three and drawing the rest en route to his first World title. Carlsen, the youngest player to the be highest rated player in the world admitted he was surprised to see that Anand had been victorious at the Candidates tournament thereby earning a right to reclaim his title.
New England Revolution reach the MLS Cup final
The New England Revolutions reached their first MLS Cup final since 2007 after holding the New York Red Bulls to a 2-2 draw in the second leg of the Eastern Conference Championship game at Foxborough on Saturday. Coming into the second leg with a 2-1 advantage, the Revs came back from a goal deficit twice in the game, with Charlie Davies scoring both goals. This game might well have been the last time the former Arsenal and Barcelona forward Thierry Henry made an appearance in the MLS, although reports of his retirement are still unconfirmed.
Red Sox sign on Sandoval, Ramirez
Following a forgettable 2014 season in which the Red Sox went from first to worst, general manager Ben Cherington and the front office wasted no time in landing free agents Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez. A big part of Boston’s struggles last season was the lack of offensive production, and following the trade-deadline day arrivals of right-handers Yoenis Cespedes and Allen Craig, the Red Sox were in need of a left-handed power bat.
Roger Federer, Switzerland are victorious in Davis Cup
Roger Federer helped Switzerland win their first ever Davis Cup title when he beat Richard Gasquet 6-4 6-2 6-2 in the fourth match of the tie, giving the Swiss an unassailable 3-1 lead. The Swiss were given a dream start when Stanislas Wawrinka defeated French No. 1 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-1 3-6 6-3 6-2. The French pulled even when Gael Monfils crushed Roger Federer in straight sets, 6-1 6-4 6-3. There were serious questions about Federer’s fitness, as less than a week earlier he had to give Novak Djokovic a walk-over in the season-ending Barclays ATP Tour Finals.
Patriots destroy Colts
Having comprehensively outplayed Peyton Manning’s Denver Broncos in week 9, the Patriots continued their relentless onslaught by hammering Peyton’s former employers, the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts had come into the game with the league’s best offense lead by Andrew Luck and the best defensive record when it came to stopping opponents on 3rd down conversions. Despite having coughed up a mammoth 59 points in a 2012 regular season game and 43 points in last season’s divisional match-up against the Patriots (both at Foxborough), the Colts ought to have come into this match with confidence — after all this one was on their home turf at the Lucas Oil stadium in which even the great Bill Belichick had a 0-3 record.
United defeat Arsenal
Manchester United overcame a sluggish start and capitalized on Arsenal forwards’ profligacy to notch up their first away win of the season as an own goal from Kieran Gibbs and a clinical finish from Wayne Rooney was enough to see them past the Gunners 2-1 and jump to fourth in the Barclays Premier League table.
Djokovic wins ATP Finals
The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London came to anti-climactic end as World No. 2 and six-time champion Roger Federer had to pull out of the final, as he wasn’t match-fit, giving Djokovic his third consecutive ATP Finals title.
Brady comes out on top against Peyton Manning
The New England Patriots routed the Denver Broncos 43-21 to claim the top spot in AFC as Tom Brady improved his record to 11-5 against longtime rival and reigning MVP, Peyton Manning. Manning-Brady encounters have always served up mouth-watering matchups, from the Manning-inspired Colts comeback in the 2006 playoff game, to Brady helping the Patriots overcome a 24–0 deficit at half time to win in overtime in Foxborough last season.
Manchester is blue again
Sergio Aguero’s solitary strike proved to be decisive, as Manchester City edged 10-man Manchester United 1-0 to move up to third in the Barclays Premier League. It was a high-intensity, fast-paced, pulsating contest with brilliant saves, a couple of nasty tackles, turned-down penalty appeals, and a well-crafted goal.