Harvard last faced Holy Cross in a 3-1 win last season at home. This year, the win came less easily.

Junior Caroline Walters led the Crimson in kills with 11. Walters and sophomore Jennifer Shults also played the net effectively with six and seven blocks, respectively.

“I think we finally got our system in place,” Weiss said “That was our first time out to play; [Holy Cross had] already played. We just did a really good job in trying to stay disciplined.”

Freshmen Corinne Bain and Grace Weghorst were the two rookies to take the court on Friday night. Bain started at setter, Kinsella’s old position, while Weghorst was subbed in at outside hitter.

“The freshmen have been a great addition,” Weiss said. “They’ve made our practices a lot more physical and challenging. Corinne and Grace got to get out on the court, and they did a nice job. That was our expectation, and we welcome them. They’ve got a long career ahead of them.”

Bain made her debut with a double-double of 10 kills and a team-high 31 assists. Weghorst provided the second-most attacks on the team, 28 for the night.

“We’ve got a really deep team, and everyone is still working for spots,” Doyle said. “The freshmen are doing amazing in practice and absolutely killing it on the court. Corinne’s serve was monster today, and Grace really got up there. She’s got insane hops.”

The game was the first at Harvard, not just for the five freshmen on the team, but also for the Crimson’s two new assistant coaches, Arturo Rivera and Jeffrey Aucoin.

—Staff writer Cordelia F. Mendez can be reached at cordelia.mendez@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @CrimsonCordelia.