Squash at Symphony Hall shows off world’s top players
Egypt's Ramy Ashour, the world's top-ranked player, triumphed last Wednesday night as the global game of squash made a splash in Boston at Symphony Hall. Dubbed "Showdown@Symphony," the exhibition tournament sought to promote squash in a country where it is but a niche sport. Four of the world's best competed in a single-elimination format on the stage of Symphony Hall for the Sharif Khan Trophy as diners on the orchestra floor and spectators from the balconies took in the action. While the organizers pulled out all the stops to keep the audience entertained with their choice of venue and assorted gimmicks, the game itself needs no embellishment.
Women’s rugby take second place in Sept. Beantown Classic
This summer was an exciting period for rugby both globally and locally. The sport was announced as an event in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. The U.S. men's national team had a strong showing in the Churchill Cup, an invitational tournament with England, Canada, and other countries. The U.S. women's national team finished fifth at the Women's Rugby World Cup.
MIT is 4th in NCSA Power Rankings
MIT’s athletic program was recently ranked number four overall in the nation — its highest ever ranking — by the National Collegiate Scouting Association (NCSA). The NCSA Power Rankings, a system first implemented by the NCAA in 2004, report on both the academic and athletic performance of each college’s athletic program.
Sports Shorts
The women’s tennis pair of Lauren C. Quisenberry ’14 and Julia C. Hsu ’14 became the first repeat winners of the conference award this year for MIT, earning the honor for the second straight week after a strong performance at the ITA New England Regional Tournament. Quisenberry and Hsu advanced to the quarterfinals before falling to the first-seeded pair in the tournament from Middlebury.
At MIT, the quirky marching band steals the show
Student life at MIT can only be described as, well, different. So much about our campus cannot be found at any place else: East and West Campus dorm dynamics, the notion of “IHTFP”, and the famous hacks are just a few examples.
Upcoming Home Events
Saturday, September 25 Sailing: Commonwealth Invite 9:30 a.m., Charles River Women’s Soccer vs. Springfield College 1 p.m., Steinbrenner Stadium Men’s Soccer vs. WPI 4 p.m., Steinbrenner Stadium Men’s Water Polo vs. Fordham University 7 p.m., Z-Center Pool Sunday, September 26 Sailing: Commonwealth Invite 9:30 a.m., Charles River Men’s Water Polo vs. Fordham University 11 a.m., Z-Center Pool
The Boston Celtics
The seventeen-time world champions are the most accomplished team in New England sports and appear primed for another title run. Here’s a look at the past, present, and future of the Celtics.
Urban gymnastics is concrete + chutzpah
Twenty of the world’s best free-runners and parkour athletes gathered for the Red Bull Art of Motion competition held at City Hall Plaza in downtown Boston on Friday.
Upcoming Home Events
Tuesday, September 21 Women’s Soccer vs. Lesley University 4 p.m., Steinbrenner Stadium Wednesday, September 22 Men’s Soccer vs. Brandeis University 4 p.m., Steinbrenner Stadium Field Hockey vs. Nichols College 6 p.m., Jack Barry Field
Sports Shorts
Behind career days from Alexandra A. Wright ’11 and Katie Kauffman ’12, the MIT field hockey team won its NEWMAC opener over Clark University, 8-2, on Sunday afternoon. Wright tallied a career best four goals while Kauffman set a new program record with five assists to help the Engineers move to 6-1 on the season.
Upcoming Home Events
Saturday, September 18 Sailing: Hatch Brown Trophy 9:30 a.m., Charles River Football vs. Mass. Maritime Academy 1 p.m., Steinbrenner Stadium Men’s Tennis vs. UMass-Boston 1 p.m., duPont Courts Sunday, September 19 Sailing: Toni Deutsch Regatta 9:30 a.m., Charles River Field Hockey vs. Clark University 1 p.m., Jack Barry Field
Sports Shorts
In their NEWMAC opener, the women’s volleyball team swept Mount Holyoke College, 25-8, 25-17, 25-8, on Tuesday night. The Engineers improved their overall record to 5-4.
Football starts season with win
This past Saturday Chad Martinovich celebrated his first opening win as the football head coach at MIT, as the Engineers defeated Becker College 21-13. Despite a few kinks early on in the skirmish, MIT dominated the game in statistics, racking up 343 offensive yards to the Hawks’ 175. The Engineers’ ground attack, led by Marcel B. Sanchez ’12, rushed for 252 yards and three touchdowns, Both the offense and defense played soundly. With a new attitude surrounding the team, MIT football may be back on the path to respectability after a disappointing one-win season last fall.
Women’s tennis beats Smith in season opener Freshmen Quisenberry, Hsu lead Engineers to decisive 7-2 victory over Pioneers
This past Saturday, MIT women’s tennis played their first match of the season against Smith College. The match started off with the doubles matches. First off was the freshmen doubles team of Lauren C. Quisenberry ’14 and Julia C. Hsu ’14. They breezed through their match and won decisively, 8-1. Next off were Melissa A. Diskin ’11 and Katharine A. O’Neal ’14. They played a tough match but lost 2-8; this made the overall score tied at 1-1. The next team to finish was Jenny C. Dohlman ‘11 and Jennifer A. Rees ’11. They were down 2-4 in their match, but they quickly changed the momentum to win the next six games straight to take the match 8-4, giving MIT a 2-1 lead over Smith. Sonya Makhni ’11 and Hillary E. Jenny ’12 were the last ones on court. The match was close with both sides fighting for every point, but MIT pulled it out in the tiebreaker for the win, 9-8(5).
The New England Patriots
When I moved from the homeland of future Washington Nationals’ star Chien-Ming Wang (that would be Taiwan) to New England ten years ago, I suppose the Patriots were my “new home team”. However, sports loyalties are complicated. My father converted (some people would say “matured”) from a Yankees fan to a Red Sox fan over the course of his life, and I’m still not sure how he did it. As the Red Sox falter this year, I make concerted efforts to attach myself to a playoff-bound National League team (the Phillies); I wear the hat, follow them in the standings, but still struggle to attach myself to this team.
Upcoming Home Events
Saturday, September 11 Sailing: Toni Deutsch Regatta 9:30 a.m., Charles River Football vs. Becker College 12 p.m., Steinbrenner Stadium Women’s Tennis vs. Smith College 1 p.m., duPont Courts Women’s Soccer vs. University of Southern Maine 4 p.m., Steinbrenner Stadium Men’s Soccer vs. Newbury College 7 p.m., Steinbrenner Stadium Sunday, September 12 Sailing: Toni Deutsch Regatta 9:30 a.m., Charles River
Sports Shorts
The field hockey team won 4-1 on Tuesday afternoon at Lasell College to remain undefeated at 3-0 this season.
Sure it’s fake, but does it have to be boring too?
Boom! TD Bank Garden erupted in cheers as the lights went down and pyrotechnics fired off on Monday night. “Sports” entertainment company World Wrestling Entertainment aired their 900th episode of Monday Night RAW. Since its debut 17 years ago on January 11, 1993, the WWE has produced the most episodes in the history of primetime TV. In fact according to a fun fact displayed during a commercial break, if MTV’s Jersey Shore continues to run at its current rate, it will reach its 900th episode in 2083 when Snooki is 96 which is older than Betty White’s current age.
After a glum Sox on Sox weekend, time to move on
All summer, I’ve read about the declining TV and radio audiences for the Red Sox, but in order to gain a full grasp on the changing market for Red Sox baseball, I needed to go down to Fenway and wait in line for seats. In years past, I’d arrive outside the ticket window at Gate E a full five hours in advance of the first pitch and find thirty to fifty people camped out in the shadow of the Green Monster, spread out on blankets, sipping coffee, and listening to radio hosts dissect the Red Sox. As I arrived on Saturday morning at the ballpark two and a half hours before game time, I found just eight people in line ahead of me. In the thirty minutes between my arrival and the time tickets went on sale, the line in front of me dwindled to a mere four people as scalpers offered face value for “box seats” (be wary of scalpers: aside from the fact that the seats are grouped in rectangular sections, there was nothing “box” about those seats). The first-row, infield grandstand seats that I purchased offered an excellent view of what promised to be an intriguing pitchers’ duel in the first game of Saturday’s double-header.
Getting to know the Boston Bruins
In Boston, the Bruins won’t win a popularity contest with the Red Sox, Patriots, or Celtics, but their hardcore fans are true Bostonians and as dedicated to their team as any fans of the other New England sports teams. For those unfamiliar with the game of ice hockey, imagine a sport which, like soccer, is a low-scoring affair, but unlike soccer, permits physicality between players and doesn’t reward those who like to fake injuries. It also represents one of the best ways to have fun when you’re near a frozen body of water and can’t go anywhere because there’s too much snow (this is New England for about four months out of the year). Many Bruins fans, unlike fans of franchises in the southern United States, have fond memories of playing the game with family and friends. Collegiate hockey (the BU Terriers and the BC Eagles are among the top teams in the nation) is extremely popular around Boston as well.