With parents and alums in attendance for senior weekend, the Harvard men’s volleyball team (7-4, 6-4 EIVA) finally put away the New Jersey Institute of Technology (2-12, 1-5) when sophomore opposite Seamus McKiernan killed the final point to win 15-11 and close out the Highlanders 3-2.

The Crimson defeated NJIT 3-1 on Feb. 29 in New Jersey, but this game had added emphasis as Harvard needed a win to rebound from a tough 3-1 loss to NYU on Saturday.

HARVARD 3, NJIT 2

In the decisive game five, the Crimson jumped out to an early lead after freshman setter Dave Fitz put together a strong serving run. Harvard had 10 total kills in game five, with senior middle blocker Juan Cardet and sophomore outside hitter Abe Marouf each tallying three. Marouf and junior opposite co-captain Juan Ramos each added key digs in the game to keep the Crimson ahead, and after the Highlanders staved off one match point McKiernan closed the day out with his final blow.

“I was yelling for the set [in the last point] because I wanted to be the guy to put it away,” McKiernan said.

The Crimson started the day in a hole after losing a tight opening game 34-32, but quickly bounced back with dominating play in game two (30-16) and game three (30-23). Looking to close out the Highlanders in game four, Harvard hit a road block and was forced to play catch up the entire game. The Crimson could never get close enough to challenge NJIT and lost game four 30-24 to set up the crucial game five.

“We definitely had to win that last one,” Ramos said. “We needed to concentrate more at times. We let them go on runs, then all of a sudden, it’s a catch-up game which isn’t a comfortable position to be in. But in the end we showed some guts to pull it out.”

“You can have a lot of mistakes over the course of the match,” McKiernan said. “But when it comes down to the last ball and the last game, anything can happen. We had a sour taste in our mouth after yesterday’s loss but we’re learning a lot and we’ve had flashes of great play, which has been very inspiring for us.”

The players were not only relieved to finish off NJIT and secure a split for the weekend games but also were happy to show off their skills in front of parents and alumni. Former Harvard players—setter Mike Bookman and middle blocker Alex Kowell, both ’03—provided continual support and praise.

“On the whole they have more talent than I have ever played with,” Bookman said. “They did an unbelievable job blocking all day.”

After the win over the Highlanders, Harvard still must gear up for its toughest competition against league rivals Roger Williams and Sacred Heart. The Crimson will battle Roger Williams this Wednesday in Rhode Island and will host Sacred Heart in two weeks.

“Our match against Roger Williams is our biggest game,” McKiernan said. “They beat us in five on our home court earlier in the season and they are also tied for first in our league.”

“We are looking forward to this week of practice,” Ramos said. “We can work on our technique to improve our defense, which hopefully will help us to win games.”

NYU 3, HARVARD 1

The fourth floor of the Malkin Athletic Center was charged with energy for Saturday’s match between the Harvard men’s volleyball team and the NYU Violets. Unfortunately for the Crimson (6-4, 5-4 EIVA), all the adrenaline was not enough to stop NYU from winning its fifth straight, as Harvard bowed to the undefeated Violets (11-4, 9-0) in four sets, 30-27, 22-30, 25-30, 28-30.