There's always a first for everything.

The Harvard men's volleyball team had just hoped that this first would never come.

For the first time this season, the Crimson (6-5, 0-2 EIVA-Hay) was swept in three games, 15-9, 15-5 and 15-10, by Princeton on Saturday afternoon at the Malkin Athletic Center.

Then the same thing happened yesterday, when Harvard lost to Rutgers-Newark, 15-4, 15-10 and 15-5. PRINCETON  3 HARVARD  0 RUTGERS-NEWARK  3 HARVARD  0

Princeton 3, Harvard 0

Strong Tiger blocking and well-placed Princeton jump serves pulled the Harvard defense out of its comfort zone and left the Crimson scrambling for answers.

"[Princeton] did a much better job of blocking than we did, and they covered the entire floor," said Harvard coach Tom Wilson. "Our blocking just wasn't as solid."

"[The loss] is very disappointing, obviously," said junior co-captain Ed Pankau. "We just missed some serves, and I know that I personally missed some serves."

For the Crimson, co-captain A.J. Lewis chalked up ten kills and ten digs, and Pankau added eight kills and 13 digs. Senior middle blocker Evan Mager also contributed 13 kills, and freshman setter Conor Gaughan set up 31 points and added 13 digs to the Crimson attack.

"We're not used to playing against a bigger team," Gaughan said. "We didn't block well enough and didn't receive their serves well."

During the highly contentious first game, Princeton obtained an early lead that Harvard was never able to overcome. With both teams tied at five, Princeton's defense, led by sophomore Kevin Roche, took control of the game and gained a quick 8-5 advantage over the Crimson.

After a series of strong blocking by the Tigers and two kills by Harvard outside hitter Paul Guilianelli, the Crimson closed the gap to 9-8. The Tigers then charged ahead with a 6-1 run behind rocket-launched kills by Princeton's John Lerch and Roche and unforced errors by the Crimson to win the first game, 15-9.

The Crimson dragged its heels throughout the second game. Sophomore Steve Cooper teamed up with junior Jason Morrow to give Princeton an insurmountable 8-1 lead. The Crimson crept back to 8-3 behind kills by Pankau and junior Josh Banerjee, but well-placed Tiger hits smoked through the Crimson's hands and found the holes in its defense. Princeton won the second game, 15-5.

Harvard opened the third game riding a wave of momentum. The walls of the MAC reverberated with the cheers and well-wishes of loyal Crimson fans, and Harvard attempted to feed off that energy. Princeton led early 2-0, but a definitive kill by Mager led a string of three unanswered Harvard points. Lewis and Guilianelli combined to give the Crimson a 6-3 lead later in the game, but the Tigers soon regrouped under the incredible serving of senior Brandon Vegter.

With the Crimson leading 6-4, the Tigers quickly rallied for an 11-6 advantage over Harvard behind Vegter's thunderous and seemingly unanswerable jump-serves. Vegter's serves broke the Crimson's momentum in the third game, and the Tigers went on to the win, 15-10.