A slow, lethargic start threatened the Penn volleyball team's chances of staying alive in the Ivy League title race, but it found its focus just in time to storm past Harvard 3-1 and Dartmouth 3-0 and keep Penn's championship hopes alive.
The Quakers (16-7, 9-2 Ivy) now stand two games behind League-leading Princeton and sit alone at the No. 2 spot after Yale lost to Cornell on Saturday.
If Penn wins at Yale and Brown next weekend and Princeton loses to either of those teams over its final three games, it sets up a much-anticipated showdown and rematch of the September 29 contest won by Princeton, 3-2.
"What we're focused on is what we have control of," said coach Kerry Carr on her team's chances for a League title. "If we win out, I think we've proved something."
Initially, things looked bleak for Penn on Friday night.
After losing game one to Harvard, the Quakers found themselves on the brink of going down 2-0, thanks to suspect play and aggressive hitting by the Crimson.
Facing a 29-26 deficit, Penn rallied to within a point at 29-28 before engaging in a long, dramatic point where both teams made diving digs and superb blocks until junior Kathryn Turner knotted the game at 29.
"That was a huge moment where I think our attitude changed," Carr said. "We started not being tentative anymore."
The Quakers would go on to win the game 32-30, and in the process knock the fight out of a feisty Harvard squad.
They would eventually win the next two games 30-20 and 30-19. Both Turner and senior setter Linda Zhang had career days against the Crimson, with Turner pounding out a personal-best 20 kills and Zhang ending with a career-high 63 assists.
Saturday, there would be no suspense. Penn dominated from the outset and took out the Big Green by scores of 30-20, 30-19 and 30-20.
Turner and Zhang were again the catalysts as Turner registered 15 kills and Zhang finished with 27 assists.
"It was a quick game for us," Turner said. "Their libero was out today, so they had problems keeping up."
"We just wanted to show Dartmouth we are the top team in the League," said Zhang, exuding a quiet confidence.
When asked if Harvard's scare carried over to the next night, Zhang wouldn't rule it out.
"It definitely made us focus a lot harder today on getting the job done," she said.
Penn must now go on the road to play Brown and Yale; the latter beat the Quakers at home in their first meeting. Carr expects more drama to unfold before the final week of the season.
"It'll be a very challenging weekend," Carr said. "Both teams have improved, so we'll have to play our best," she said.
And afterwards, they can only hope that Princeton sustains that one loss.
