Harvard Downs Raiders in Four

An air of steadfast consistency is slowly arising from the Malkin Athletic Center. The Harvard men’s volleyball team (4-2, 2-2 Hay), after winning two critical division games on the road, rolled along to their fourth straight victory last night, defeating visiting Rivier College (8-8) in four games (30-24, 30-25, 25-30, 30-18).

Led by dominant performances from senior co-captain Laurence Favrot and sophomore middle hitter Brady Weissbourd, the Crimson took command over an under-matched Raider team early on with hitting percentages of .429 and .478 in the first two games of the series.

Favrot, who finished with 15 kills, reigned supreme in the first game, amassing several kills and setting a tone of dominance for the rest of the team. Weissbourd continued Harvard’s offensive forays in the second game, providing a monstrous kill, one of 12 for the night, to tie the game at 12. The Crimson quickly took the lead and never looked back to win the second game.

“We played a fairly consistent match,” Harvard head coach Chris Ridolfi said. “Our team goals are to spread the ball around, identify who’s hot and go that hot hand often. Tonight, [Rivier] couldn’t stop Brady. If we could’ve passed off and given the ball to Brady more often, we could have been even quicker tonight.”

The Crimson hoped to complete the match in three successive games but a valiant effort from the Raiders in game three forced an ultimately decisive fourth game. Senior middle hitter Andy Nelson started the third game serving up a multitude of vigorous attacks, racking up three of his 14 total kills and an ace within the first few minutes.

After holding a steady lead throughout the game, Rivier clawed back from a two-point deficit at 22-20, riding off the momentum of Raiders’ sophomore Scott Wright’s thunderous block to collect five consecutive points and the game victory.

“After batting around a .400 attack percentage, we dropped to hit .194,” said Ridolfi. “We talked about being workmanlike and professional but we weren’t specific enough. [The team] had a spirited talk and I didn’t need to push tem too far. They had their own goals set in mind and got their stuff done”

Finding themselves down by two early in the fourth game, the Crimson began to rally around Nelson’s ferocious kills and jumped out to a seven point lead, 25-17. Serving as a final nail in the proverbial coffin, successive kills by Weissbourd and sophomore outside hitter Jeff Nathan after Nelson’s dominant late ace sealed the game and the match.

“We did a really good job of spreading the ball around and getting a good hit percentage,” said senior co-captain Dave Fitz. “We got our focus back and stayed motivated to finish the match.”

Looking ahead, Harvard looks to continue their winning ways against considerably tougher opposition this weekend with NYU and Springfield visiting the Malkin Athletic Center. With continued dedication to good form and remaining consistent in their attack, the Crimson hope to climb the standings of the EIVA Hay division.

“We know that [NYU and Springfield] are stronger opponents and can hit the ball higher and faster than what we saw today, so we’re going to have to stay focused in practice,” said Fitz. “But we know what type of team we are and we’ll be ready to answer the challenge.”