Schafer nearly polished off Dartmouthsingle-handedly, registering 8 kills by the 6-3point in the second game.
For its part, the Big Green couldn't getanything positive started. The team seemed happyto trade side-outs and stay in the game. Dartmouthregistered consecutive points only once beforefinding itself down 10-3 en route to losing thesecond game, and hurt its own cause with 13 errorsin the first game alone.
"They got fazed easily," Schafer said. "Theyseemed to wait for [us] to make the mistakes."
But then the joyride ended. Harvard droppedgame three 15-10 when its defense broke down andDartmouth's previously ineffective hitters weresuddenly finding holes all over the court. The BigGreen recorded 25 kills in the game, nine morethan their total in any other game.
However, the Crimson jumped out to an early 7-4lead in the fourth game, and it seemed that theprevious game was merely a momentary blip on theradar screen. But Dartmouth was far from finished.As the substantial and largely bipartisan crowdcame to life for both sides, Dartmouth stormedback to take the fourth game in a dogfight, 16-14.
"I think we just got overly confident,"Denniston said. "I didn't see any real change outof Dartmouth--it was just very frustrating."
Harvard showed chinks in its armor briefly inthe fourth game--it committed anuncharacteristicly high 14 errors. The Crimsonfailed to place several serves in play and allowedtwo consecutive Big Green points by failing tocommunicate on aces to the middle of the court.
"We weren't playing point-by-point," Schafersaid. "We just let our focus break down."
Senior setter Kate Nash had 69 assists againsta single error in commanding the Crimson attack.