Spikers Reach Quarters in NJ Event

The Harvard men's volleyball team got off to an excellent start this past weekend, advancing to the quarterfinals of the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) Tournament Saturday.

The Crimson's play in the tournament gives Captain Alexander Berg an optimistic outlook on the team's season.

"In the three years that I have played for the team, this is the strongest squad, yet," Berg said.

Harvard (2-2) defeated Westpoint in its first game, and then lost to the host team, NJIT. Berg and his crew then went on to soundly defeat Cornell, advancing to the quarterfinals where they were stopped by Penn.

Berg's confidence stems from the fact that the Crimson has four strong first-year players--Albert Kim, Vince Marin, Pat Harlan and Brian Jones. Jones is the new middle blocker and Berg feels that if Jones continues to perform like he did Saturday, "he will be a monster in a year."

According to Berg, this is the deepest that the Spikers have ever been talent-wise. This year, there are 12 to 13 strong players on the team compared to the past, when the squad only had seven or eight strong players. The depth of Harvard's bench was evident Saturday. Everyone who came off the bench played well and contributed to the team's efforts, Berg said.

When asked about the future of the Spikers, Berg expressed with confidence that this year's squad is strong enough to take the Ivy League championship.

THE NOTEBOOK: The Crimson's next game is Saturday against MIT and Yale.