Volleyball Begins Second Half of Ivy League Slate at Harvard

MATCH 17
Dartmouth (6-10, 3-4 Ivy League) vs. Harvard (11-5, 4-3 Ivy League)
Date: Saturday, Oct. 14 | 5 p.m.
Location: Cambridge, Mass. | Malkin Athletic Center
All-Time Series: 24-40
Last Meeting: Sept. 22, 2023 (L, 3-1)

SECOND HALF OF IVY LEAGUE PLAY BEGINS
Now at the midpoint of conference action, Harvard and Dartmouth are neck-and-neck at fourth and fifth in the Ivy League standings, respectively. One match separates the two travel partners. The difference? A key victory the Crimson picked up in Hanover on Friday, Sept. 22 to kickoff conference play. Yale, Princeton and Brown once again appear to be the top three, and Dartmouth can move into the fourth spot with a road win on Saturday.

TRADING SWEEPS
Dartmouth is 24-40 all-time against Harvard and the two sides have exchanged season sweeps for the past three seasons. The Big Green owned the 2019 series against the Crimson, who got revenge in 2021 following the cancelation of the 2020 season. Dartmouth swept in 2022, but is now in danger of being on the wrong end of a sweep having lost the first meeting. 2018 was the last time Dartmouth and Harvard split a season series.

BOTH SIDES WINLESS AGAINST BROWN AND YALE
Last weekend, Dartmouth and Harvard were winless on the road against Brown and Yale, who squared off in last year's Ivy League Tournament final. The Big Green were swept in a nationally televised match with the Bears on Friday evening and saw the same fate the following day against defending champion Yale. Harvard was swept by Yale - no set was decided by more than three points, and the third finished 29-27 - and was more handily defeated by Brown on Saturday.

WANG'S TRIPLE DOUBLES
Harvard's senior setter Ashley Wang ranks second in the nation in triple doubles, trailing only Jalyn Stout's seven at Coastal Carolina. Wang's most recent triple double came in a home win over Princeton on Oct. 6 with 17 kills, 19 assists and 18 digs.

LAST MEETING
Dartmouth was downed in four sets in the Ivy League opener despite a career-high 16 kills from Kauany Gutz, who hit .257 on 35 total attempts. Kate Vorhies and Brynne Faltinsky were a one-two punch for the Crimson with 12 kills each, and Ashley Wang came dangerously close to another triple double with 24 assists, nine kills and eight total blocks.

BRINGING THE POWER
Sophomore Molly Power, who appeared in just six sets as a freshman and didn't see any Ivy League action, has worked her way into the rotation this season and its paying off the Big Green. Power put up three blocks against Brown, including two in the third set, and had three kills on only four attempts.

BEWARE OF HARVARD'S BLOCKERS
Part of the Crimson's improvement from 2022 to 2023 has been blocking. With three players averaging more than 1.00 block per set, Harvard leads the Ivy League and ranks 21st in Division I in blocks with 2.62 per set.

ROAD STRETCH ENDS IN CAMBRIDGE
Saturday's match at Harvard marks the end of three straight on the road for the Big Green, who will enjoy the comfort of Leede Arena for two consecutive weekends starting with Columbia (Oct. 27) and Cornell (Oct. 28), followed by Yale (Nov. 3) and Brown (Nov. 4). The next time Dartmouth hits the road, it'll be for the final weekend of regular season action at Penn and Princeton.

Schedules