Crimson Rallies, But Can’t Complete Comeback

There were moments during the Harvard men’s volleyball team’s 3-2 loss at Endicott (5-2) on Friday when the players seemed to have their first victory of the season at their fingertips. But instead, the Crimson again returned home empty-handed.

The loss sets Harvard, which was missing co-captain Gil Weintraub, back to 0-3.

“It was a unique, unique match,” co-captain Eric Kuld said. “We did a lot of things okay. We should be doing them a lot better.”

The match was close from the opening minutes, with the Crimson able to come away with a 47-45 victory in the first set, during which neither team was able to establish momentum. Each time one team had a kill or caught a lucky break from an attack or service error, the other would respond with the same on the next play. Kuld’s finishing abilities were constantly being called upon, as the senior finished the set with 10 kills.

The largest lead acquired by either team was a six-point Harvard advantage, 22-16, but the Gulls rallied back. It seemed that the set would never end, until finally Endicott committed back-to-back attack errors to give the Crimson the victory.

“The first game was cool just because it went so long,” sophomore Matt Jones said in a text message. “[It was] definitely the longest game I’ve ever played in.”

The attack errors were mistakes the Gulls quickly corrected in the second set, as they stormed to a 30-19 victory. Harvard kept it close for the first 20 points before Endicott went on a five-point run, taking advantage of a service error and two attack errors. Coach Brian Baise called a timeout, and play evened from that point, but the Crimson was never able to recover.

One more five-point run put Harvard at an insurmountable 10-point deficit. All it took was a few kills to even the match, 1-1.

And by that point, Harvard had the lost the momentum and couldn’t seem to stop the attacking abilities of A.J. Witkofsky and Zeke Kubisch in the third. The Crimson only won back-to-back points five times throughout the set, while the Gulls frequently had two- and three-point runs to win, 30-21.

“[Endicott] did not have a conventional playing style,” Kuld said. “They’re really good at chasing down balls on broken plays. They’re just really gritty as a team. It took us a while to figure that out.”

It looked like the close start might be a preamble to a blowout.

Instead, Harvard turned things around in the fourth set, controlling play as much as the Gulls had in the previous set. This time, it was the Crimson forcing errors and making kills, with Jones, sophomore Nicola Ivica, and freshman Derek Jansma finishing off point after point for Harvard.

Meanwhile, senior Soren Rosier and Jones were winning their serves, allowing Harvard to go on five- and four-point streaks late in the game.

“I think we started to find our rhythm,” Kuld said.

But unfortunately, the team couldn’t sustain that rhythm into the fifth set, when Endicott used a strong start to propel it to a quick victory.

“If we got off to a better start in the fifth set, I think we could have won,” Kuld said.

But the fifth set of volleyball games only goes to 15 points, leaving little room for error. When the Gulls charged to an 8-2 lead, the Crimson didn’t have much opportunity to rally.

While Harvard improved its play after a timeout, it couldn’t win consecutive points or steal back momentum. Finally, Witkofsky, who pestered the Crimson all night at the net, finished off the match with his 31st kill, sending the Crimson back to Cambridge on a disappointing note.

“Going five sets and losing is always a feeling you don’t forget,” Kuld said. “It’s a good opportunity for strengthening us...We’re glad we’re getting these learning experiences early in the season. Hopefully that is going to help us down the stretch in conference play when we need the win.”

—Staff writer Christina C. McClintock can be reached at ccmcclin@fas.harvard.edu.