M. Volleyball Revs Up Too Late

They say Harvard students relish putting things off to the last minute, but this was ridiculous.

The Harvard men's volleyball team waited until the bitter end to make its move, staving off nine match points in the third and decisive game before falling, 15-9, 16-14, 17-15 to the Springfield College Chiefs last night at the Malkin Athletic Center.

"It was definitely a letdown," junior co-captain A.J. Lewis said. "We were frustrated that we couldn't get those last points. We were playing with nothing to lose."

Paced by junior middle blocker Evan Mager's team-high 14 kills, the Crimson (9-9,1-5 EIVA Hay Division) went deep into the second and third games, even missing out on three game points in the second, but could not finish against the Chiefs, who improved to 13-7 as Harvard dropped its fourth straight.

Senior opposite David Olsen added 11 kills and ten digs, while senior setter Evan Beachy tallied 39 assists for the Crimson, which struggled all night to find an offensive rhythm.

"I felt like we were never in a groove," Lewis said. "We were only comfortable in the offense toward the end, when we strung together all of those points. Our transition game and our passing need a lot of work."

After stumbling into the match, falling in the first game 15-9 while surrendering four service aces, the Crimson made its case for contention in Game Two.

Four consecutive side outs into the action, sophomore co-captain Ed Pankau--who posted a .625 hitting percentage on the evening--stepped to the service line and staked Harvard to a 4-0 lead behind kills from Mager and Lewis. Following Springfield's quick side out, Mager's ace and a block from Pankau put the Crimson up 6-0, its largest advantage of the evening.

After blowing the lead and falling into 9-9 and 12-12 ties, Harvard seemed energized by Beachy's play in the middle, and went up 14-12 for game point on his block.

And right about then, things started unraveling. Servers Beachy, senior outside hitter Jim Rothschild and Pankau failed to convert on three consecutive possessions, and Springfield finally capitalized, going up 15-14 after two would-be Crimson kills went long.

Even Beachy's game-saving dig--one of eight he collected on the night--only stayed the execution, as Chiefs sophomore outside hitter Charlie Haer buried the Crimson on Springfield's third game point for the 16-14 win.

"They were much more aggressive on defense," Lewis said. "We were flat-footed a lot of the time."

That defensive effectiveness helped the Chiefs shut the door when it became fundamental, turning a potential equalizer into a back-breaking two-game advantage.

The Crimson, visibly shaken after the intermission, quickly dropped the first five service points from Chiefs senior setter Bret Stothart, even letting Stothart punch a bad pass into a defensive hole in the Harvard mid-court.

Only when it had gone down 14-9 did the Crimson snap back to its senses, making a legitimate play to at least steal one game. Harvard fought off nine match points while slowly working its way back into the game, trying at 14-14 on a spectacular pair of blocks from Lewis and Olsen.

But the Springfield machine would not be denied, and junior outside hitter Peter Murray sealed the 17-15 victory by stuffing an attempted kill for the three-game sweep.

"Our passing was a big problem," Lewis said. "We went to three or four outside hitters [sophomore Joe Herger, senior Kalon Morris and senior Ryan Oliver] trying to find some passing that worked. That's definitely something we need to work on."

The Crimson has two remaining games on its home slate--a Sunday afternoon tilt with Sacred Heart and a March 18 matchup with MIT--before its spring training trip to California, and will close its season with the Ivy League Championships at Dartmouth in April.