match was particularly for the spikers, who beaten their arch rival since finals of the Ivy League two years ago.

the Crimson can parlay its of brilliance into more play, the smooth-running machine will continue to between Harvard and the Ivy title in April.

not an awesome said sophomore Adam Keller. not invincible but they ball than we do."

Saturday at the IAB, the Tigers it out all the way.

an enthusiastic crowd of 70. Crimson took its first game Princeton this season, but fell in three tightly games.

start of the match looked for Harvard, as the were unable to return setter Riopelle's opening serves.

the Crimson quickly lost its advantage.

put up an impenetrable on Harvard's power-side , and soon the spikers slid into of tentative and sloppy

Tigers took a 12-5 lead, and threatening to run away with the when Riopelle came up to

again, the setter's serves to unsettle the visitors. This the Crimson's offense to gel, rallied to cut down Princeton's -10.

Princeton won the game, 15-12.

the second game, which won, 15-11, both teams in similar performances.

Tigers were rock steady, and , though brilliant at times, inconsistent.

that is, with the of outside hitter Sean who suddenly came alive in game.

senior made several great saves and found a way to rate the seemingly impenetrable block.

and Captain Mohan clearly dominated offense for the rest of the

it was the rest of the match provided, by far, the best volleyball of the day.

In the third game, the Crimson proved not only that it could play consistently, but also, more important, that it was capable of beating Princeton--soundly.

With great serving by Riopelle, Doyle, and Keller, and excellent blocking by Scott Alpert, Harvard seized a 9-0 lead.

The spikers looked more determined than they've been all year.

'It's the first time this season that we've played with intensity,' said Doyle.

At 11-5, Seth Farber's determination scared some cheering fans, as the junior jumped into the stands in an attempt to save a wayward pass. But Farber, simply danced in and out of the seats and back onto the court. No one was hurt and Harvard went on to win the third game, 15-5.

Princeton seemed to have lost its composure, but in the final game the smooth-running machine got right back on track and chugged ahead to a 7-4 lead.

Then Alpert served four points to put the Crimson up, 8-7.

And then the lights went out.

Darkness swept the IAB for 10 minutes before Harvard Coach Ihsan Gurdal and several players succeeded in turning the lights back on.

After this unofficial and unexpected time out, both teams fought hard to regain momentum.

The score was close for the rest of the match, but in the end Princeton emerged victorious with a 16-14 win in the fourth and deciding game.

"We play really intense at times," said Gurdal. "But then we soften up."

"We have to learn how to finish," agreed Alpert. "We can't just run up points and then stop playing."

"We weren't outclassed by Princeton," said Nadkarni. "They're efficient, but they're not overwhelming. Until we get steady, we're going to have problems. But if we can iron cut those inconsistencies I think we'll beat Princeton at the Ivies."