Varsity level status apparently agrees with the men's volleyball squad if last night's 3-0 shellacking of a hapless University of Massachusetts team is any indication.

The victory over the minutemen is the fourth straight for the Crimson netters who were promoted from club to team status this year. It proved a costly win, however, as captain Terry Trumball suffered a knee injury. Trumball will be incapacitated for an indefinite time and probably will not see action in the New Jersey tournament this weekend.

Senior Kevin O'Sullivan, substituting for Trumball, proved more than equal to the challenge, turning in a sterling performance.

A poised and confident crew started strongly taking the opening game 15-8. The strong outside play and spiking ability of John Tanaka highlighted the initial match.

In the second game, UMass gave the Crimson a tough fight, but Harvard persisted and came out on top with a 15-8 victory.

No Spike

The lack of a strong spiker proved critical to the Minutemen, as the Crimson returned their shots with ease throughout the confrontation.

"We played really well," junior Dave Coatsworth said after the game. He added, "they were weaker than we had anticipated."

The superb teamwork that is the hallmark of the Crimson emerged in the third and final game as they easily dispatched the Minutemen and swept the three-game contest.

The Crimson, defending east coast champions, have established themselves as leading contenders for the Ivy Championship. Two weeks ago the netmen defeated heavily favored Princeton earning their first victory over the Tigers in six years.