BOSTON - No. 3 Trinity University Volleyball collected its fifth victory over a nationally-ranked opponent, the fourth in a sweep, Saturday morning as it defeated No. 18 Massachusetts Institute of Technology, ending MIT's 17-match winning streak to start the 2021 campaign. The Tigers (19-2, 6-0 SCAC) was tripped-up to conclude their voyage to New England as Tufts University narrowly squeaked past with a 19-17 fifth-set surprise.

Trinity returns from its trip with a 3-1 record for the weekend notching a pair of victories over nationally-ranked squads along with its second and third five-set matches of the 2021 campaign.

Senior outside hitter Annie Rose Leggett (Austin, Texas / Westwood) collected double-doubles in both of Saturday's contests, her sixth and seventh of the season. Leggett posted double-doubles in three of four matches in this weekend's competition.

Senior rightside hitter Sara Flynn (Seattle, Wash. / Roosevelt) posted a .413 hitting rate for 25 kills on the day, just two shy of Leggett's team-high 27 kills Saturday while she also accounted for eight blocks.

Junior setter Marisa Amarino (Calabasas, Calif. / Notre Dame) executed the offense with 48 assists followed by senior Alexis Acevedo (San Antonio, Texas / Incarnate Word) with an additional 40 assists to account for 88 of Trinity's 103 in total, a 12.88 per set average.

The third-ranked Trinity volleyball team resumes Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference play next weekend in its third divisional tournament of the season on the campus of No. 17 Southwestern University.

Trinity 3, No. 18 MIT 0 (25-12, 25-16, 25-22)

A trio of breakaways highlighted the Tiger's fifth nationally-ranked victory of 2021 as runs of 13-4, 7-2 and 8-1 led to their sweep of MIT.

Leggett collected 10 of her 11 kills evenly between the first and third frames. Leggett's five successful swings in the opener all came during the 13-4 stretch to create a 13-point advantage at 22-9 and cruise to finish. Trinity as a unit hit a scorching .696 attack percentage through the first game to set the tone offensively.

Senior outside hitter Avery Tuggle (Cedar Creek, Texas / Cedar Creek) took the reins from Leggett with five kills of her own in the second as the Tigers continued to pour it on. Five kills from the 2019 SCAC Player of the Year maintained Trinity's momentum while a trio each from Flynn and junior middle blocker Brette Thornton (Rockwall, Texas / Rockwall) kept up the pace.

Leggett's presence returned in the third stanza as MIT finally found its rhythm. Trinity trailed for the first time Saturday at an 8-7 disadvantage but kills from on Leggett on the Tigers' eighth, ninth and 10th points kept them in tow, then her fifth kill of the frame took the lead back for good at 20-19. Flynn collected three more kills during Trinity's 9-3 match-clinching run, including the match's final point.

Tufts 3, Trinity 2 (12-25, 25-21, 25-23, 17-25, 19-17)

Trinity held noticeable advantages across the statsheet for match totals, mostly thanks to complete control of its first and fourth-set victories but hotly contested second and third frames maintained the Tigers' statistical advantages despite the margins. Trinity committed zero errors on the attack in the final frame but did not have a defensive answer for the Jumbos late.

Flynn set another new career-high with 16 kills in the afternoon matchup on a .355 hitting clip. The reigning SCAC Offensive Player of the Week has set a new career-high in kills three times in her last seven matches.

Amarino and Acevedo joined Leggett in the double-double department. Amarino took the slim advantage in assists (27-24) in that match while the advatage in digs (14-10) swung toward Acevedo.

Up Next

No. 3 Trinity Volleyball returns to SCAC play next weekend in Georgetown, Texas with rematches against Centenary College, University of Dallas and Austin College on tap, along with the first of two meetings with the host Pirates before the end of the regular season.