W. Spikers Rise to Expectations at Season's End

A glorious finish in the Ancient Eight Tournament ended the season for the Harvard women's volleyball team on a triumphant note.

The Crimson closed the season with a record of 21-10. While the team struggled with inconsistencies and mid-season setbacks, the strong showing in the Ivy Tournament revealed Harvard's perseverance and enthusiasm.

"I'm so excited about how the season ended this weekend," sophomore Elissa Hart said. "This was the high note that we were hoping to end on."

During the tournament, Harvard avenged past Ivy losses, beating every team that had defeated them earlier in the season.

Despite losing to Penn in the first round of tournament action, the Crimson went on to beat the Quakers in the semifinals. The spikers also beat Yale and Princeton. The win over Yale, a team that had beaten Harvard just two weeks ago, is indicative of the Crimson's evolution over the course of the season.

"Our goal all through the season was to peak at the Ivies, because that's when it counts," Hart said.

The season began on September 8, with Harvard getting its first win as well as its first loss. The 3-0 win came against Boston College during the Eagle Invitational. The win over BC was really a strong start to the season. The 3-0 loss to Providence came during the Eagle Invitational as well. The tournament at Boston College continued the following day, with Harvard tallying two more victories, against both Hartford and Northeastern.

After the Eagle Invitational, Harvard continued its winning streak with a 3-0 defeat of Canisius.

Harvard emerged from its next tournament, the Connecticut Classic, with a win over Fairleigh Dickinson, but losses to Connecticut and Hofstra.

Going into Ivy competition, the Crimson record was 6-3.

The month of October opened up with three consecutive losses. The first loss was at the hands of Providence, a 3-0 shutout.

"There was a lot of promise, but there were times that our mental game wasn't there and we didn't capitalize on the opportunities that we had," co-captain Mika Sampson said.

In its first two Ivy matches, the Crimson lost to both the Quakers and the Tigers-a disappointing beginning to the Ivy season.

Harvard rebounded, however, with a win over Central Connecticut, 3-0.

The Ivy season picked up again, this time with entirely different outcomes for the Crimson. In three successive Ivy matches, Harvard edged Columbia, Cornell and Dartmouth. This successful upturn in League competition was a boost to the team's confidence.

After a loss to UMass in non-league competition, Harvard went on to beat Brown.

In the next match, the Bulldogs proved their trip up from New Haven was worthwhile. Yale beat Harvard 3-0.

Harvard swept all four opponents in the Harvard Invitational. The Crimson ended the Invitational on a five game winning streak, beating non-league opponents Vermont and Manhattan twice. Harvard also proved victorious in an Ancient Eight match-up, edging Dartmouth, 3-0.

From November 10-12, the Crimson played in the Ivy Tournament. Despite a close first round loss to Penn, Harvard went on to beat Brown, Yale and Cornell.

In the semi-finals, the Crimson erased the memory of the Quakers' earlier victory, winning the match 3-0.

Harvard then split a two-game series against Princeton. Princeton had lost only two matches all season, and Harvard's victory in the first match showed its true talent. The Tigers' win in the second match earned Princeton a spot in the NCAA tournament.

With an outstanding performance in the Tournament, Harvard volleyball finished in second place. The ultimate success versus Ivy competition avenged earlier losses, and marked the end of a well-rounded and well-played season.

"We had the athletic ability and physical skill all along, but it was the honing of those skills, and mostly it was the tuning of our mental skills that was the biggest factor this season," Sampson said.

Mental and physical agility did connect for the Crimson when it counted, and Harvard concluded its volleyball season having lived up to its promise.