M. Spikers Drop Two Of Three in Tourney

The future looks bright for the Harvard men's volley ball team, but only because the past has been so dim.

The Crimson (9-13 overall, 0-6 EIVL) closed out its less-than-stellar season when it dropped a pair of games to Cornell, who lost in the final to the ferocious Princeton Tigers in the Ivy League tournament Saturday at the Malkin Athletic Center.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little disappointed," junior Captain Alec Berg said. "I can't put my finger on anything to do better, specifically."

Princeton dominated the tourney, never dropping a game. The competition was set up with two pools of four teams playing round-robin games.

The one bright spot for Harvard was a 15-9, 15-7 belting of Brown. In the victory, the Crimson played relatively well, though they almost let the Bruins claw back into the first game--allowing seven straight points before putting them on formaldehyde.

Harvard's other matchups proved to be less satisfying.

Princeton housed Harvard, 15-1, 15-4.

"Princeton was not tested at all," Berg said. "They dominated the tournament.

The darkest cloud of the day had to be the loss to Cornell. In its closest match Harvard faltered, 15-13, 17-15.

"We seemed to give them the match," sophomore Vince Marin said. "We just broke down at the end."

Princeton rolled in the final against Cornell, 15-9, 15-1. The Tigers proved to be too much for all of their Ancient Eight rivals, walking away with all the hardware.

It's been a rebuilding year for the young Crimson. Graduating four players, including two starters, Harvard looks to gain confidence with experience.

Next fall, Marin will join "Smart" Alec Berg with the leadership duties.

"Vince is good Captain material," Berg said.

Other brightspots for next year's Crimson will include the return of coach Ishan Gurdal, who was forced to step down midway through the season in order to serve in the Turkish Army. Judy Merryman, who replaced Gurdal, will return as an assistant. The tandem could prove to be very succesful because each has different strengths as a coach.