8
BASKETBALL
No. 4 seeded MIT advanced to the NEWMAC
Championship for the third year in a row, but fell
to No. 3 Smith, 70-56. The Engineers advanced
to the title game after generating runs during
the final three minutes of both their 67-53
quarterfinal win over No. 5 Wellesley and their
78-72 semifinal victory at No. 1 Babson.
MARGARET SULLIVAN
MEGHAN O’CONNELL
JOCELYN LUIZZI
CHRISTINA ANTONAKAKIS
“One of my favorite memories from my four years of being
a student athlete at MIT is when we won the NEWMAC
Championship for the second year in a row my sophomore
year. It felt like the culmination of everything we had worked
so hard for over the course of the year, and being able to play
in that game and then celebrate the victory with my teammates
was an amazing experience.” - Jocelyn Luizzi ‘21
Christina Antonakakis was voted to the D3hoops.com All-
Northeast Region Third Team, marking the sixth straight
year MIT received this award. She joins Sabrina Drammis
‘16, a two-time pick, and Kara Holinski ‘19, a three-time
honoree and the 2015-16 Northeast Rookie of the Year, on
the Engineers’ all-time list. (FULL STORY)
“I chose to attend MIT because from the second I stepped on
campus during my official visit, it felt like home. The people I
met, the drive to obtain success, and collaborative environment
were not like anything else; I was so eager to become a part of
it.” - Christina Antonakakis ‘22
MIT collected a program-record nine NEWMAC
Academic All-Conference Team selections,
tying for the highest total in the league.
This was also the fourth year in a row the
Engineers paced the NEWMAC in Academic
All-Conference honors. (FULL STORY)
Christina Antonakakis was named to the
NEWMAC All-Conference First Team while
Jocelyn Luizzi earned a spot on the Second
Team. Kylie Gallagher represented the
Engineers on the NEWMAC All-Sportsmanship
Team. (FULL STORY)
Christina Antonakakis tied the program record
for points in game on back-to-back occasions,
equaling the mark of 33 points set by Diane
Ozelius ‘79 in 1978. Antonakakis first achieved
this feat in MIT’s NEWMAC Tournament
quarterfinal win over Wellesley. Two days
later she repeated this performance in the
semifinals at Babson, as a 6-of-6 showing at
the free throw line during the final 26 seconds
of the game brought her total to 33.
Meghan O’Connell joined the MIT women’s basketball program as an assistant coach in the summer
of 2017 after a successful nine-year stint as the head coach at Wakefield (Mass.) High School.
She was then elevated to interim head coach for the 2020-21 season. During O’Connell’s time in
Cambridge, the Engineers captured two NEWMAC Championships and made three appearances
in the title game. (FULL BIO)
“Being a student-athlete at MIT is electric,
because to commit to a varsity sport at such
a rigorous school, means the people that
are playing beside you are committed and
passionate. To share the love of a game with
diverse, intelligent, and driven individuals
inspires me on the court, in the classroom,
and in seeking opportunities to make the world
a better place.” - Paula Pieper ‘22