CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The University of Pennsylvania volleyball team got off to a slow start Friday night, dropping the first set to Harvard, but roared back to win the next three and earn a 3-1 victory over the Crimson.
Set scores were 19-25, 25-18, 25-17, 25-22.
Penn won its first Ivy League match of the season, moving to 1-3, and got back to .500 overall at 7-7. Harvard fell to 4-8 overall, 2-2 in Ivy play.
Quaker Notemeal
*Junior
Zada Sanger had an incredible night on attack, putting down 16 kills with just one error on 27 attacks, a .556 hitting performance.
*Sophomore
Jenna Garner once again flirted with a double-double, finishing the night with 11 kills and eight digs. She also led the Quakers with two service aces.
*Sophomore
Adell Murray had another efficient night on attack, hitting .438 (8K-1E-16A), and added two block assists, tied with classmate
Ellie Siskin for the team lead.
*Junior
Bella Rittenberg recorded seven kills, Siskin finished with five, and freshman
Haley Kerstetter had four with just one error.
*Freshman
Addison Pollock ended the night with 11 digs and had the ace to finish the match.
*Sophomore
Emery Moore dished out 23 assists while senior
Anna Shohfi had 18. Moore added a kill and nine digs while Shohfi had three digs.
How It Happened
SET 1 (Harvard 25-19): Playing its first road match in Ivy play, Penn seemed unprepared for Harvard's intensity early. The Crimson scored four points in a row early to go in front 8-3, forcing a timeout by Quakers head coach
Tyler Hagstrom. It was 10-6 when Harvard reeled off six straight, Penn's second timeout doing no good as the margin grew to double digits. It wasn't until 20-8 that the Red and Blue got some semblance of momentum, scoring six straight points and nine of 11, but it was far too late as the hosts cruised to victory. Garner was a bright spot, putting down five kills and hitting .444.
SET 2 (Penn 25-18): It was 3-3 when Penn ripped off eight straight points, Sanger leading the charge with three kills. That lead held the rest of the way, essentially, as Harvard never got closer than five and that wasn't until it was 22-17. Sanger finished the set with five kills on 10 attacks without an error (.500), while Murray was a perfect 1.000 on her three kills as was Rittenberg on her two.
SET 3 (Penn 25-17): This set was tied, 5-5, when Rittenberg put down a kill, followed by a pair of Garner kills and a Kerstetter ace. That made it 9-5 and Penn never looked back. Another four-point run pushed the Quakers' lead to six, at 14-8, and the Red and Blue closed it out by winning three of the last four points. The juniors led the way in this all-important swing set, Sanger hitting .800 with four kills on five attacks and Rittenberg hitting .750 with three kills on four attacks.
SET 4 (Penn 25-22): Easily the most dramatic set of the night, the teams tying 13 times before Penn could close it out. Neither team held a lead bigger than two points until Harvard went in front 15-11 with a three-point run. That brought about a Penn timeout, and out of the stoppage the Quakers scored five straight points to draw a Crimson timeout. Harvard tied it after that, but Rittenberg and Garner sandwiched kills around a Harvard set error, making the run 8-1 and putting Penn in front, 19-16. Harvard wasn't done, scoring the next three points to tie it at 19-19, and then Penn went back in front three more times with the Crimson answering each one until it was 22-22. It was at that point that the Quakers landed the knockout punch, Murray and Sanger putting down kills and then Pollock serving an ace to finish the match.
Up Next
Penn closes out this Ivy weekend tomorrow night at Dartmouth. First serve in Hanover is slated for 5 p.m.
For the latest on Penn volleyball, follow @PennVolleyball on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com.
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