Green Rallies, Takes Spikers; Crimson Falls in Final Game

The Harvard women's volleyball team dropped a a tough five-game match to Dartmouth Saturday in the Indoor Athletic Building (IAB).

The Crimson (4-8 overall) started off strong, breezing through the first two games in fine form--15-9 and 15-8 despite losing starter Pascale Jean-Louis to an ankle injury early in the first game.

"We won those pretty decisively," Harvard Captain Lisa Eskow said, "but then we began to relax a little."

And while the Crimson relaxed, the visiting Big Green finally found its ignition key and started revving up its offense.

Dartmouth ran out to an early lead in the third and pivotal game, but the spikers were not ready to give up yet, battling back to take a 12-10 lead.

But then the Big Green asserted itself and won five consecutive points, claiming the middle game, 15-12.

"They [Harvard] lost confidence in themselves," Harvard Coach Seth Farber said.

The last two games saw an improving Dartmouth squad completing the comeback it started in the third game against a unconfident and fading Harvard squad.

The final result: Dartmouth, three games to two.

"The main problem was that everyone wasn't playing together," Eskow said. "Dartmouth just played as a unit--they don't have a lot of talent--but they played as a unit and beat us."

The game marked the spikers' first home game in the newly refurbished and rennovated (IAB).

Well, sort of.

While the $4 million rebuilding project was touted as a major facilities improvement, Eskow said that the building looked "exactly the same."

Additionally, a dirty and dusty playing surface and spectator stands which couldn't roll out must have made the Crimson wonder how sweet this home-sweet-home really was.

"Usually home games are really comfortable," Farber said. "You know, its your home gym, you're used to practicing there...but that thing is far from done."

One improvement Eskow did note was the Olympic-style net system which anchored the net poles better and alleviated the problems of uprooted floor boards which have plagued the gym in the past.