UMass, accustomed to the competition in the Atlantic 10 League, simply proved to be too much for a Harvard at less than full strength. Freshman setter Kate Nash did not make the trip because of a test. Junior outside hitter Heather Rypkema also did not travel.
Harvard, which is undefeated at home, will square off against Brown (3-14, 1-4) at the Malkin Athletic Center Friday at 7 p.m. Harvard hosts Yale (14-6, 3-2) on Saturday at 4 p.m.
"Both games are really important to us," Hart said. "We lost very close matches to Brown and Yale last year, so we want revenge."
Harvard is currently tied with Yale for third in the Ivy League standings behind undefeated Princeton and Cornell (4-1 Ivy). The Big Red's only loss came at the hands of the Crimson. This head-to-head advantage could give Harvard the upper hand in the standings should their records be evened.
According to Hart, the Crimson is definitely in the hunt for the Ivy League championship which will be determined by a double elimination tournament on November 10-12 at Penn.
"Everyone in the league is well matched," Hart said. "We're looking forward to the Ivy tournament; I'm optimistic."