M. Volleyball Readies for Ivy, EIVA Playoffs

With the NCAA tournament fresh in everyone's minds and with Stanley Cup and NBA playoffs right around the corner, postseason fever is certainly becoming a more prevalent ailment.

Prepare to be infected with a new strain of playoff fever: Crimson volleyball.

The Harvard men's volleyball team will be heading to the Ivy League Championship on April 15th to face perennial foe Princeton and has secured a berth in the EIVA playoffs with impressive wins over league opponents Columbia Union and Eastern Mennonite University.

These laurels capped an outstanding regular season for Harvard, which went 12-6 overall and racked up a dominating 8-2 record in divisional action, its best finish since 1993.

"As I have said before, this season has been the best of my four here at Harvard," said co-captain Ed Pankau. "The team is physically talented and our collective will to win will move us through the playoffs."

The first postseason action will be in two weeks when the Crimson travels to Princeton to face the defending Ivy League champion Tigers.

During the tournament, the eight Ivy League teams are divided into two pools with Harvard in one and Princeton in the other. Harvard and Princeton are the only two Ivies with Division I teams and have historically made quick work of the other teams before facing each other in the finals.

In two of the last three years, Harvard has taken a quick one-game lead in the three-game championship match only to fall to Princeton in the final two games.

"Losing 2-1 to Princeton in my freshman and sophomore years was not very enjoyable to say the least," Pankau said. "This year, everyone is going to have to contribute and play at the top of their games for us to win."

A win over Princeton in the finals would give Harvard its first Ivy title since the 1993 season.

Immediately following the Ivy League Tournament, Harvard will play in the first round of the EIVA Regional in the NCAA Tournament.

The Crimson will go in to the EIVA Region as the No. 9 seed and will play the No. 8 seed, which is awarded to the second place team in the Hay Division.

As of today, the Hay Division is still in doubt, and Harvard will either play the Queens College Knights or the Springfield Hawks, depending on the outcomes of the final few games.

If Harvard faces Queens in the first round, its prospects look good.

The Crimson beat the Knights in a close five-game match to close out the home season in dramatic fashion. Also, Harvard's size--the players on the team average 6'5--could be an advantage against a smaller Queens team that includes 5'9" outsider hitter Maxim Auguste.

If Harvard faces Springfield, then the contest will be payback for the Crimson.

Harvard lost to Springfield in four games after the Crimson won the first game in convincing fashion by a score of 15-7. The challenge for Harvard will be to rebound mentally from a crushing loss.

"I felt we were somewhat mentally immature as a team early in the season," said freshman setter Mike Bookman. "Now, after many close matches throughout the season, we are mentally capable of playing with anyone."

Should Harvard upset either Springfield or Queens, then its next battle would be against the top-ranked Penn St. Nittany Lions.

No matter how far Harvard goes in either playoff, its season will easily rank as one of the best on record.

The key to transforming Harvard into such a competitive and talented team seems to have been second-year Head Coach Tom Wilson. With his thorough recruiting of quality players like Bookman and freshman Alex Kowell, as well as his dedication to making the team a more cohesive unit, Wilson has turned a .500 program into one that will seriously threaten for EIVA supremacy in the future.

"The most influential character in our run to the playoffs this year

has been Coach Wilson," Pankau said. "After his first season last year, he clearly had a vision for where this team should be in the near future and took us there."

Harvard also enjoyed sensational season performances from its starters, gaining many players national statistical rankings. Senior outside hitter Joe Herger finished the season second in the nation in digs, Pankau is tenth in hitting percentage and twelfth in blocks and Justin Denham completed his sophomore campaign as thirteenth in hit percentage despite a mid-season injury.

If Harvard can continue this caliber of play in the postseason, then there is no telling where the Crimson may end up. Regardless of the outcome of the playoffs, the Harvard men's volleyball program can look forward to continued success.