Men’s rugby reinvented
You don’t often hear rugby associated with MIT, but for the 30 players on the MIT Men’s Rugby team, it’s something that brings them together. Started in 1949, the club is one of the oldest in Boston and the founding core of Boston’s Super League club. A mixture of different countries, languages, and styles of play, the team has pulled together, seeking to play at their top level at all times. For the past four months, men’s rugby has been practicing and preparing to defend the Division III NERFU (New England Rugby Football Union) Cup. Whether playing in snow, sleet, or sun, the team knows that this is their chance to retain their championship and prove that they can play Division II rugby.
MIT hosts National Taekwondo Championship
The National Taekwondo Collegiate Championships were hosted by MIT Sport Taekwondo on April 7 and 8 with a record breaking 601 competitors. Although it was a difficult task to organize such a large tournament, the team, led by head coach Dan Chuang and captains Seth “Matt” Weinberg G, Erika Lee ’12, and Tara P. Sarathi ’12, had a strong showing and received second in the novice and championship divisions, as well as second place overall with a total of 49 points.
Hamels admits to hitting rookie Harper with pitch
Baseball is a game of unwritten rules. Don’t steal bases when you have a big lead. Don’t bunt to break up a no-hitter. Retaliate when one of your teammates is hit by a pitch. It is understood that once you get to The Show, you abide by these rules. There is no need to speak of them to the media, to your teammates, or to anyone else, for that matter. This is what made Cole Hamels’ recent admission to intentionally plunking rookie phenom Bryce Harper all the more alarming.
Track and field take 1st and 2nd!
The MIT Men’s Track and Field team captured its eighth New England Division III outdoor title on Saturday, winning the meet held at the Steinbrenner Track with 113 points, snapping Williams College’s streak of eight consecutive team crowns. Tyler S. Singer-Clark ’14 led the way with a pair of individual wins, as the Engineers won four total events but used their outstanding team balance to outscore Williams by 15.5 points.
SPORTS SHORT
The triathlon club had an impressive turn out at their annual Iron Nerd race. The team holds the race each year to help promote a healthy and active lifestyle at MIT. The race also serves as a recruiting event for the MIT team. Seventy-seven undergraduates, graduates, and MIT affiliates registered for the race this year.
Thunder, Heat expected in finals
Although the Bulls dominated the majority of the Game 1 matchup, the victory may have come at too steep a price. Coach Tom Thibodeau’s controversial decision to leave his starters in the game with one minute left with his team up 12 proved costly as superstar point guard Derrick Rose’s season-ending ACL tear may jeopardize the high expectations Chicago had coming into the playoffs. Philadelphia guard Evan Turner infamously tweeted last week that “the heat are a tougher team for us to match up against,” which has elicited much criticism over the past week. There may be some truth to that statement, however. The 76ers have matched up very well with Chicago over the past two seasons, even with Derrick Rose in the lineup. The two teams have great benches, with the 76ers’ second unit scoring 40.8 PPG (fourth in the NBA) and the Bulls featuring Kyle Korver, Omer Asik, Taj Gibson and C.J. Watson. Chicago and Philadelphia also pride themselves on playing stellar defense and are first and third, respectively, in the NBA this season in points allowed. This series already had upset potential, but the Sixers were never fully expected to win more than one or two games. Without Derrick Rose, Chicago is still incredibly formidable, but I think Philadelphia may be able to steal a game or two in Chicago, and pull off the upset.
Women’s crew has best finish
MIT Women’s Openweight Crew had its top finish in its three years as a member of the Patriot League at the conference championship regatta last Sunday on the Cooper River in New Jersey. The Engineers placed third in the team standings, behind the U.S. Naval Academy and defending champion Bucknell University, after back-to-back fifth-place finishes in 2010 and 2011.
MITCHELL H. KATES ’13: Kates dominates the court as MIT point guard
Mitchell H. Kates ’13 is a Course 6-3 (Computer Science and Engineering) junior on the MIT Varsity Basketball Team who has been recognized for his stellar play on numerous occasions throughout high school and college. During high school, Kates won the Kerwin Award, awarded to the best player in the Shore Conference (New Jersey), broke the career assists record at Colts Neck High School, and received a gold medal on the National U-16 United States Maccabi Basketball Team in Israel in 2005. After coming to MIT, Kates became NEWMAC Rookie of the Year as a freshman, was selected to the NEWMAC all-conference team all three years, and was a 4th team All-American this year.
Cycling team wins ECCC title
Two months ago, the MIT cycling team kicked off the Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference (ECCC) road season with a near perfect team performance at the Rutgers’ “Frozen Toed Season Opener.” After eight consecutive race weekends of consistent top results, the MIT cycling team held an unattainable lead in the team standings. Captains Adam P. Bry G and Katie J. Quinn G were assured to finish with the male and female individual season leader jerseys coming into the regular season finale, the “Live Free or Ride Harder” race weekend hosted by the University of New Hampshire on April 28 and 29.
Gymnastics dominates
Having just won five out of their six meets, the MIT Women’s Gymnastics team was fully confident and prepared to enter the National Association of Intercollegiate Gymnastics Clubs’ meet in Salt Lake City, Utah. The meet was at the Salt Lake City Convention Center, April 19–21, and over 50 gymnastics clubs from the United States entered the competition. MIT decidedly won the competition with 149.25 points overall.
Men’s tennis beats Springfield College
MIT took the first step towards defending its New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference Men’s Tennis title with a 5-0 win over Springfield College today in a semifinal match of the 2012 NEWMAC Tournament. MIT improved to 14-4 with the victory while Springfield fell to 8-8 on the season.
Track and field dominates at weekend invitationals
This past weekend the MIT track and field team was split between two invitational meets. Although the meets were non-scoring, MIT posted some solid performances as the team prepares for the championship season.
Nine triathletes compete at Nationals in Ala.
This past weekend, five men and four women from the MIT Triathlon Club competed at the USA Triathlon Collegiate National Championships in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Members raced against 1,200 graduate and undergraduate triathletes from over 100 schools across the nation in an Olympic distance triathlon, which consists of a 1500-meter swim followed by a 25-mile bike and a 6.2-mile run. The entire event takes between two and three hours to complete, with the fastest elite males finishing in just under two hours.
Baseball team beats WPI
MIT received a strong pitching performance from junior Aric J. Dama in game one and then unleashed a 16-hit attack in game two that resulted in a sweep over WPI in a New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference baseball doubleheader. MIT improved to 18-14 overall and 9-10 in the NEWMAC while WPI fell to 21-15 and 9-9 after the final conference games of the season.