MIT club sports teams rocked the 2013 season
People don’t generally think of MIT as an athletic powerhouse. What they don’t know is that in addition to 33 varsity sports, MIT has 35 club sports teams — and they’re really good. Last season, many club teams made it to the national championships in their sports, and individuals from each team excelled. Here are last season’s highlights from some of MIT’s club sports teams.
MIT beats Worcester State in women’s soccer matchup
After scoring the lone goal of the game against Simmons College the night before, Michaelann Rodriguez ’14 scored both of MIT’s goals against Worcester State University to lead the Engineers to a 2-0 win over the Lancers at home on Tuesday evening. MIT is now 2-1 for the season, while Worcester State fell to 1-1.
MIT women’s soccer falls to Brandeis, 1-0
At the first game of the 2013 season, the MIT women’s soccer team fell to Brandeis University on the road on Friday evening with a score of 1-0. The Engineers, who were recently ranked #15 in the nation in the NSCAA Division III preseason rankings, have faced the Judges in their season-opening game for 10 of the past 11 years.
Patriots release Aaron Hernandez from team
The NFL pre-season is usually a time to test new players and to hash out a roster for the regular season. This year’s NFL pre-season produced two notable changes to the New England Patriots’ roster, the release of Tim Tebow and Aaron Hernandez (along with the associated controversy).
Cogburn takes fourth in Leadville cycling race
Preparing to race for a 100-mile mountain bike race is tough enough, but preparing to race at high altitudes is another challenge altogether. Cameron Valier Cogburn G qualified to race in the Leadville MTB (Moutain Bike) 100 by winning the Wilmington Whiteface 100 in New York State earlier this year. As a National Collegiate winner of the Division II Men’s Road Race and winner of the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic bike races, Cameron faced the challenge of racing at ten to twelve thousand feet for 100 miles.
MIT ranked high in NEWMAC preseason polls
MIT men’s soccer, which won its first New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) title in program history last year, was picked second in the conference’s preseason coaches’ poll that was released on Tuesday afternoon.
Don’t give up on your game, it won’t disappoint
When I was growing up, I had the privilege of listening to Dave Niehaus — the best broadcaster to ever call a baseball game — animate the ups and downs of the Seattle Mariners on long summer nights. I only realized how good I had it after I moved across the country, and had to rely on a virtual tool to provide game updates. As a pitch comes in, a red, green, or blue dot will indicate either a strike, ball, or ball in play. Balls put in play are followed by a neutral, and technical description of the action.
Cameron Cogburn wins Mt. Hood Cycling Classic
From June 21 to 23, Cameron Valier Cogburn G competed in Oregon’s Mt. Hood Cycling Classic and walked (or rode) away in first place with the yellow jersey. He came into the final stage of the four-stage race weekend in fourth place overall and 40 seconds behind the leader. Cogburn made up significant time on the last climb of the race to finish eighth in the stage and win the professional men’s category by six seconds.
Nadal and Federer lose in early days of Wimbledon
Rafael Nadal of Spain entered Wimbledon 2013 with great confidence after winning his record-setting eighth French Open title at Roland Garros, having defeated top-seeded Novak Djokovic in a grind-out five-setter in the semifinals. Nadal suffered from a partially torn patellar tendon during the middle of 2012, which caused him to withdraw from the 2012 London Olympic Games and stay sidelined for nearly a year after his second round loss at Wimbledon 2012. Despite this long hiatus, Nadal returned and displayed a championship performance during this year’s French Open. However, the fifth-seeded Nadal did not have as much luck last week during his Wimbledon first round match against Belgian Steve Darcis, who is currently ranked 135th in the world. Darcis upset Nadal in a tight three sets (7-6 (4), 7-6 (8), 6-4) to advance to the second round.
New competition for Volleyball
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The MIT men’s volleyball team will join the United Volleyball Conference (UVC) starting in 2014. The Engineers, who have been an independent team for the past two seasons, will begin conference play immediately with the UVC.
SPORTS SHORT
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The MIT men’s lightweight crew team traveled to California for the 111th annual IRA National Championship Regatta, which took place from Friday, May 31 through Sunday, June 2. Tech entered one varsity four boat in the championships, competing in their first race early on Sunday morning.
NBA finals: San Antonio Spurs vs. Miami Heat
Who will take this year’s NBA finals? The Tech’s Austin Osborne evaluates the positional matchups between the Miami Heat and the San Antonio Spurs.
NEWMAC All-Conference
A league-leading 61 athletes represented MIT on the 2013 New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Spring Academic All-Conference Team. The Engineers finished the year with a conference-high 146 selections, followed by WPI with 101.
Men’s track places 8th in NEWMACs
MIT Men’s Track and Field wrapped up competition at the New England Outdoor Championships with an eighth place finish with 36.50 points on Saturday. The Engineers finished just ahead of New Hampshire, with 35 points. Southern Connecticut State came in first place with 159 points.
Cycling caps off season with DII national and ECCC titles
The MIT Cycling team capped off a great season last weekend in Ogden, UT, where they won the Division II National Championships team omnium. This comes after a stellar performance the weekend before at Penn State where MIT secured the season team omnium victory in the Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference (ECCC). The team omnium competition combines points from all men’s and women’s races, so usually requires a team to have depth in both fields.
Tech Tennis heads to DIII nationals
The list of the individuals who will be competing in the 2013 NCAA Division III Tennis Tournament was released on Wednesday afternoon, revealing the names of two MIT athletes. Lauren C. Quisenberry ’14 will represent the MIT women’s tennis team for the second time in her career, the last of which was in 2011, while Edwin M. Zhang ’14 will be making his first nationals appearance. The last MIT men’s tennis player to make it to NCAAs was Tom Dohlman in 2007.
Miami Heat expected to advance to Round 3
Miami comes into this series after a long rest following Round 1. They swept the Milwaukee Bucks convincingly and earned a week-long rest before Round 2. Unfortunately for the Heat, they are matched up against the Chicago Bulls after they upset the 4th seeded Brooklyn Nets. The Bulls are a bad matchup for Miami, as they play incredibly tough defense. Luol Deng will make life difficult for league MVP LeBron James, and Jimmy Butler will likely be matched up with Dwyane Wade for the majority of the series. Chris Bosh may be the key to the series. If he can dominate in his matchup against a hobbled Joakim Noah, the Heat will make quick work of the Bulls, but if Noah can play consistently well, Chicago could make things interesting, even without Derrick Rose. As a side note, the Bulls ended Miami’s 27 game winning streak earlier this season.