Crimson Drops Consecutive Ivy Games

The Harvard women’s volleyball team entered the weekend’s matches against Yale and Brown at the Malkin Athletic Center (MAC) determined to snap a two-game Ivy League losing streak, but both the Bears and the Bulldogs defeated Harvard’s injury-weakened lineup, as the Crimson slipped to 8-8 overall and 2-4 in the Ivy League.

With starting libero Katherine Kocurek still out of action due to a day-to-day injury, many of Harvard’s players found themselves in unfamiliar positions. The effects of the shake-up were visible, as the Crimson’s passing broke down in Saturday’s contest against Brown.

Harvard will have to solve its problems on the road, as it leaves the Malkin Athletic Center for the next two weekends before returning home on Nov. 3 against Cornell.

BROWN 3, HARVARD 0

Even though the Crimson did not have to face another unbeaten team after losing to Yale on Friday night, Brown certainly did not play like a team that had won only one-fourth of its Ivy League contests, as the Bears decisively swept the Crimson, 3-0 (30-25, 30-26, 30-24).

In the first game, the Crimson faltered from the start, falling into a 1-5 deficit. Unable to mount a full recovery, the team struggled to establish its comfort zone, most notably in its passing.

“I feel like our team played like a bunch of individuals out on the court today,” junior co-captain Laura Mahon said. “I think it happened from the start and continued through the end. That’s never going to win a match.”

The Crimson battled back to within one after a kill by junior co-captain Suzie Trimble, who posted a team-high 14 kills, made it 10-11. Just two points later, Brown (6-12, 2-4 Ivy) began a seven-point run to widen their advantage to 12-19, as the Crimson committed two attack and three ball handling errors in that span.

After that point, the Crimson closed the deficit but only came within three points of Brown, as the Bears took the first game decisively, 30-25.

The second game began in similar style as Brown’s dominating attack quickly put the Crimson behind 1-5. As the game progressed, the score looked bleaker still when Brown held a 21-15 lead.

But thanks to poor sets and ball handling errors by the Bears, Harvard took four of the next five points to make the score 20-22. That was the closest the Crimson would come, as Brown clung to its lead down the stretch and took game two, 30-26.

Game three’s dramatic reversal of fortunes in the opening points offered a glimmer of hope, as Harvard finally found some momentum and jumped out to a 5-2 lead. The Crimson led by as many as five when Brown called a timeout trailing 11-6.

Afterwards, the Crimson looked like a different team, as it dropped nine of the next 11 points, giving the Bears a 13-15 lead that they would not relinquish. Harvard’s inconsistent play, highlighted by its .125 hitting percentage, allowed Brown to complete the sweep, 30-24.

“Something that really has been tough on us this season is that we fight so hard and then it just doesn’t click in the end,” said sophomore outside hitter Kathryn McKinley. “We’ve been learning in these last few weekends that we need to go all out on every single point as if it’s game point.”

YALE 3, HARVARD 1

On Friday night at the MAC, the Crimson captured game one decisively but failed in its upset bid against first-place Yale, losing 3-1 (24-30, 30-24, 30-26, 30-20).

With Kocurek still out of the lineup, Mahon stepped in at libero for the first time in her collegiate career, recording 19 digs on the night and leading the Crimson to a 30-24 drubbing of Yale in game one.

But the Crimson failed to capitalize on its momentum in game two, as the team allowed a 15-9 lead to slip away. Yale recovered from its initial adversity to tie the score at 20 before cruising to a 30-24 win.

Part of Yale’s success stemmed from its consistent blocking defense at the net, as the Bulldogs recorded eight team blocks during the four games.

“Great blocking always makes it easier for a defense,” Mahon said. “They made us work to find a way to hit it around or over their blocks.”

During game three, Harvard’s hitting percentage collapsed to .037 as the team committed eleven errors and lost game three, 30-26. But the number eleven has even further negative connotations, as the Bulldogs went on an 11-0 run in the middle of game three to make the score 22-11.

“We need to do a better job limiting the other team’s runs to two or three points rather than five or six,” Harvard coach Jennifer Weiss said.

During game four’s 30-26 loss, the Crimson’s hitting percentage entered negative territory.