But Penn State, winner of 16 straight EIVA championships and 17 straight conference matches, had no desire to halt the trend.

Thanks to a 12-3 run, the Nittany Lions salvaged the set, 25-21. Then, in the tiebreaking game, Penn State won eight of the first nine points en route to a 15-10 victory.

“We’re definitely disappointed as a whole,” Zimmick said. “There were certain points where we weren’t able to convert offensively, which was partly due to our inability and partly due to their defense.”

In the second and third sets, however, it was Harvard that pulled the decisive punches.

Clinging on to a 20-19 advantage in the second set, the Crimson put together a 5-1 streak to tie the game score at one-apiece. One frame later, Harvard repeated the trick, responding to a 22-21 deficit by winning five of the last seven points.

“They’re a great serving team, and we were handling their serves well,” Zimmick said. “Especially in the games we won, we did not allow them to get on any service runs.”

The first set consisted of a similar narrative, albeit with a different result. After the two teams battled to an 18-all deadlock, the Nittany Lions won five straight points and eventually took the frame, 25-20.

Throughout the night, Penn State’s Aaron Russell verified his All-American status by finishing with a game-high 26 kills and three service aces. 

“We need to figure out how to close,” Clemens said. “It was very positive that we could hang with them and even take the lead…. Now we just need that last little push.”

—Staff writer Sam Danello can be reached at sam.danello@thecrimson.com.