ITHACA, N.Y. – On a night when both team's offenses struggled, the Harvard volleyball team managed to overcome a hot start by Cornell to beat the Big Red, 3-1, this evening in Newman Arena. Cornell won the first set, 25-19, but the Crimson came back to win the next three, 25-20, 25-19, 25-19. The Big Red will play its final home game of the season tomorrow and honor the team's two seniors – Alyssa Phelps and Macey Wilson – as the squad plays host to Dartmouth at Newman Arena at 5 p.m.
 
Cornell (10-11, 4-7 Ivy) was led by Carla Sganderlla and Kit McCarty with 15 and 11 kills, respectively, while Wilson finished with a team-high .286 hitting percentage (9-3-21).
 
Phelps posted a double-double with 39 assists and 10 digs, as did Sganderlla, who added 11 digs to the Big Red effort.
 
Libero Kiley McPeek posted 20+ digs for the fourth time this season, finishing the night with a match-high 21, while defensive specialist Shae Bauchens tied her season-high with 16 digs.
 
Harvard (7-13, 5-6 Ivy) was led by Corrine Bain's 10-kill, 14-assist, 20-dig effort, while Maclaine Fields hit an impressive .471 on the evening (8-0-17). Bain and Fields also registered eight and six blocks, respectively, as the Crimson posted 12 total team blocks. Splitting the setting duties with Bain was Erin McCarthy, who finished with 19 assists and 19 digs, while libero Isabell Tashima chipped in 13 digs and 10 assists.
   
The first set was the Big Red's best offensive effort of the night, as the team hit .191 (14-5-47), led by a balanced attack from Sganderlla (four kills), Emily Wemhoff (three kills) and McCarty (three kills). The match was tied five times with three lead changes before five unanswered points, which included a pair of service aces from Jenna Phelps, and a pair of kills from Wilson, put Cornell up, 16-9. The Crimson would not get within three points the rest of the way and the home team punctuated the 25-8 victory with the final three points coming off a kill and an ace from Sganderlla, followed by a kill from Wemhoff.
 
The second set was nearly identical, but this time it was Harvard using a 6-1 run to blow open a one-point game (9-8) en route to a 25-20 victory.  
 
Coming out of the break, sophomore Natalie Danenhauer staked the Big Red a 6-0 lead with an incredible five service aces, but the visitors clawed their way back with some timely hitting from Bain and Paige Kebe to knot the match at 7-7. The teams traded errors to get to 8-8 and then Harvard used another 6-1 run to take the 13-9 lead. This time, it was Cornell that battled back with four unanswered points with two kills from McCarty, and one each from Sganderlla and Wilson to tie the game at 14-14. Again, the teams traded errors to get to 15-15, before a block from Fields and Grace Roberts Burbank gave Harvard a lead it would not relinquish, as the Crimson went on to win, 25-19.
 
The Big Red regained some momentum early in the fourth set, getting solid play from Wilson and Sganderlla, who combined for a block and registered one kill apiece, to go along with two kills from McCarty, and a service ace from Shae Bauchens to put Cornell up, 10-4. But a service error by the Big Red opened up a 12-0 Harvard run which featured seven Cornell errors as the Crimson took the 17-10 lead. A kill from Sganderlla ended the visitors run and the Big Red showed some grit as it battled back to within one-point (18-17). Unfortunately, a kill from Jocelyn Mere ended the Cornell threat and the Crimson closed the match with a 25-19 victory in the fourth set.