SEASON RECAP: Injuries Lead to Underachievement in Hay Division

Repeating as champion is a difficult task—especially when everyone expects you to do it.

Though the Harvard men’s volleyball team came into 2006 as favorites to win the reformed Hay Division after capturing the Sweeney Division in the spring of 2005, a spate of injuries and a slow start resulted in a disappointing fourth-place finish for the Crimson.

Junior Dave Fitz, Harvard’s only setter with significant collegiate playing experience, suffered an ankle bone bruise on the opening weekend of the season and missed five weeks. Coupled with co-captain Seamus McKiernan’s nagging shoulder problems, Fitz’s injury prevented the Crimson offense from establishing a steady rhythm, leading to a 1-7 start.

“We don’t want to make any excuses,” Harvard coach Christopher Ridolfi said, “but we didn’t have an experienced setter, and it hurt us.”

Though Harvard won its first three league contests, three-game losses to New Jersey Tech and Springfield knocked the Crimson from the top of the standings into the middle of the pack. To have a chance at the division title, it seemed Harvard would have to win the rest of its matches.

Motivated by the task ahead, the Crimson picked up seven straight victories. The two most impressive wins came against eventual Hay champion East Stroudsburg (ESU), as Harvard—the only squad to defeat the Warriors in a league contest all year—cruised to 3-1 wins in both matches.

“Of all the teams in the league, we probably match up best with East Stroudsburg,” Ridolfi said. “Both our strengths are through the middle, and our middle hitters are better than theirs. So they played to our strength, and we were able to beat them twice.”

But ESU kept winning, and the Crimson was left fighting for second place and a spot in the end-of-year EIVA conference tournament. With Springfield—who routed Harvard both times the two teams faced off—hovering right behind the Warriors, the Crimson could not afford any more losses.

Harvard, however, could not maintain its win streak, dropping a five-game match to New Haven in its penultimate Hay matchup and effectively eliminating itself from postseason consideration.

“We were confident going into the New Haven match,” Ridolfi said. “We beat them well in the first game, but we let them get back into the match in the second frame. I didn’t prepare our guys as well as I could have.”

Fortunately for the Crimson, its prospects for 2007 will be bright. Though the team is graduating three seniors—including the dominant McKiernan—many of its younger players appear well poised to fill in.

Rising sophomore middle hitter Brady Weissbourd showed signs of promise in limited action and rising junior Brian Rapp established himself as a solid option at libero. With the leadership of Fitz at setter, Harvard should be primed for another run at the division title.

“We’re hoping that our experience gets us off on the right foot immediately,” Ridolfi said. “That’s why you’re able to live with what happened this year, because of what it means for next year.”

—Staff writer Karan Lodha can be reached at klodha@fas.harvard.edu.