Cambridge, Mass. – The Harvard volleyball team won their first Ivy League contest over Penn on Friday, Sept. 30 in a home match that started the Title IX Celebration weekend for Harvard. Harvard (2-8, 1-1 Ivy) defeated Penn (1-11, 0-2 Ivy) 3-2 in five sets of 21-25, 25-22, 25-16, 23-25 and 15-7.

The Harvard volleyball team started the day with a 4-0 run, giving up the lead toward the end of the set and allowing the Quakers to win set one. Set two was a close match from the start, with Harvard pulling away toward the end to win by a three-point margin. Set three started off with plenty of back-and-fourth action until the Crimson pulled away with a six-point run, shutting down the Quakers by nine points. Set four was another close match with the Crimson trailing for the majority of the set, ultimately falling short of closing the match in four sets. In the final set of the night, the Crimson took the lead on the first point and never gave it up, winning the match 3-2.

Bella Almanza and Katie Vorhies were key players for the Crimson tonight, accounting for 35.5 of the team's total 79 points. Vorhies led the team in kills, followed by Almanza who was also the leader in aces, blocks and assists. The Crimson reported a 29.1 hitting percentage over Penn's 24.7. While the Quakers earned more kills throughout the night, the Crimson outscored them in blocks and aces to take home the win.

Harvard Highlights

- The Crimson team recorded 11 aces throughout the night, led by captain Almanza and Corinne Furey with four each. Furey scored two consecutive aces to put the Crimson up four points in the final set, proving to be a vital part of the win.

- Four Crimson players had eight or more kills on the night, topped by Vorhies with 17, Almanza with 11, Ariana White with nine and Olivia Cooper with eight.

- Harvard's six-point run in set three was made up of kills by all three of the leaders on the night: Almanza, Vorhies and Cooper.

Up Next

Harvard Volleyball will play their second match of the weekend against Princeton at home on Saturday, Oct. 1 at 5 p.m. The match will stream on ESPN+.