Year in Sports 2011
WOMEN'S TENNIS: Doubles Trouble Crushes Crimson Tournament Hopes
The sharp upward rise of the Harvard women’s tennis team took a dip this year. Finishing 9-9 overall (4-3 Ivy) and without an NCAA berth, the squad feels as if it underachieved.
FEMALE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR RUNNER-UP: Clark Shows Precocity in Ivy League Play
With less than 10 seconds left on the clock, Harvard needed someone to step up and make a shot to avoid a one-point loss to Columbia. That person would prove to be rookie Christine Clark.
MEN'S TENNIS: Conference Performance Not Enough for Ivy Title
Just as top players such as Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray have struggled against the dominant forces of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in the past, the Harvard tennis team’s best was not enough to defeat its toughest Ivy League opponents.
WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL: Rough Season Gives Inexperienced Squad Chance to Improve
The young Harvard women’s volleyball team struggled mightily at the onset of its season but finished the year on a high note, winning four of its last seven games.
COACH OF THE YEAR: Amaker Turns Around Struggling Program in Four Years
In four short years, Harvard coach Tommy Amaker has led the Crimson to league and national relevance, punctuated by Harvard’s first ever Ivy League title this season.
MEN'S WATER POLO: New Coach, Seniors Help Team Improve
The Crimson (12-16, 2-5 CWPA) earned third place at the first-ever Ivy Championship and finished the year with a fifth-place finish at the Collegiate Water Polo Association Northern Division Championship.
GAMES OF THE YEAR: A Tale of Two Teams
Two games against the Princeton Tigers defined a record-breaking 2010-2011 season for the Harvard men’s basketball team.
WOMEN'S WATER POLO: New Additions Help Crimson Break .500
New additions helped the Crimson (17-15, 2-3 CWPA) transform its declining program into a growing threat in the Southern Conference throughout the year.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Upsets Doom Harvard to Second Place Once Again
For the third straight year, the Harvard women’s basketball team (18-10, 10-4 Ivy) came up short in its pursuit of the Ivy title, landing in the all-too-familiar second spot along with an up-and-coming Yale squad.
MEN'S BASKETBALL: Harvard Wins Ivies, Still Misses Madness
In a season marked by so many firsts for Harvard men’s basketball, one number stands out.
MEN'S VOLLEYBALL: Fast Start Gives Way to Forgettable Rest of Season
Although the Harvard men’s volleyball team began the season with a string of victories and earned retribution for some of last year’s losses, the Crimson (9-13, 1-7 EIVA Hay) struggled in league play in the latter stretch of its season, earning its only league victory against NJIT in the last game of the season.
TEAM OF THE YEAR RUNNER-UP: Crimson Dominates Nation’s Best
In the EARC this year, there simply wasn’t another school that compared. Both the No. 1 Crimson lightweight crew and No. 3 heavyweights dominated their regional competition from start to finish en route to a trip to Worcester, Mass., for Eastern Sprints.
Confronting the Concussion
As research increasingly shows that brain trauma has significant neurological implications—and can even induce severe depression—Chris Nowinski '00 has helped the public and professional athletes understand the serious risks posed by damaging blows to the head.
MEN'S CREW: Late Surge Helps Harvard Over Ancient Eight Rivals
Harvard took each race, each practice one step at a time. And it didn’t miss a single one.
FIELD HOCKEY: Injuries Lead to Disappointing Season
After starting the year on a two-game winning streak, Harvard field hockey won only one of its next 15 contests, finishing the year 3-14 overall and 1-6 in the Ivy League.
COACH OF THE YEAR RUNNER-UP: Legendary Coach Harry Parker Leads Crimson to Top Spot in Nation
Harvard coach Harry Parker’s excellence has been so consistent that it almost gets taken for granted. But this season, his success was impossible to ignore.
WRESTLING: Despite Losses, Harvard Enjoys Solo Successes
For the past several years, the Harvard wrestling team has struggled, but a few of the squad’s standouts have salvaged the season by performing successfully on an individual basis. This season was no different.
FENCING: Youth Powers Crimson Forward
Like scotch and wisdom, the Harvard fencing team seems to have only improved with age.
WOMEN'S CREW: Radcliffe Crews Command Waters to Earn NCAA Berths
But after ending the dual season with an 11-4 record, a fifth-place finish at the EAWRC Sprints, and a berth to the NCAA Championships, it was clear that the Black and White heavyweights not only exceeded expectations, but also returned to their former prestige.
PARTING SHOT: The Conflict in Conflict of Interest
Since past writers have covered the profound and the memorable, I’ll take this space to draw out an issue we usually try to ignore.
WOMEN'S GOLF: Harvard Nearly Takes Ivies
The odds were not in the Crimson’s favor, and for the first time in recent memory, Harvard failed to win a tournament all year.
MEN'S GOLF: Crimson Middles in Ivy League Tourney
Despite dominating its competition at the Century Intercollegiate and finishing nine strokes shy of first place at the Northeast Invitational, the Crimson never quite seemed to get into the swing of things this season.
TRACK: Personal Bests Pace Improving Crimson Squad
The Harvard men’s and women’s track and field teams remained a consistent force within the Ivy League in the 2010-2011 season, one in which many strong individual and team bests were set.
CROSS COUNTRY: Chenoweth and Richardson Lead Crimson on Trails
In spite of numerous injuries that marred their rosters, the Harvard men’s and women’s cross country teams enjoyed a successful 2010 season.
MEN'S HOCKEY: Strong Ending Redeems Slow Start
The Harvard men’s hockey team’s 2010-2011 campaign is the tale of two seasons.