Princeton Welcomes Dartmouth/Harvard, Looks To Stand Atop Ivy Race At Week's End

LIVE VIDEO STREAM: Dartmouth l Harvard
LIVE STATS: Dartmouth l Harvard

There was a moment of pure bliss Saturday night, when Maggie O'Connell put down the final point of Princeton's first win at Yale since 2007. They celebrated with just a little more excitement than normal, which wasn't surprising since none of the Tigers were even in high school the last time Princeton won in New Haven.

By Sunday, though, it was back to work. After all, while a 3-0 Ivy record is nice, it doesn't get you to the NCAA tournament.

And if it did, Harvard would be going as well.

Princeton, which now has the longest active Ivy League home win streak (14 matches), will welcome both Dartmouth and Harvard to Dillon Gym in a weekend that could end with one team in sole possession of first place. The Tigers, led by reigning Ivy League Player of the Week Jessie Harris, know they will face significant challenges against teams that rank as the Ivy's best in a couple different categories.

Both matches will be streamed on the Ivy League Network.

Dartmouth (6-6, 2-1 Ivy) has put together arguably the toughest defense in the Ivy League. It has limited opponents to a .165 hitting percentage, and it averages 2.46 blocks per set, both of which lead the league by healthy margins. Carly Tower has been the Big Green's leading blocker, while teammate Mallen Bischoff was one dig shy of a double-double in a 3-0 win over Columbia last weekend.

Harvard (8-4, 3-0 Ivy) is tied with Princeton atop the Ivy race, with all three wins coming at home this season. The Crimson have won matches with efficient offense; it has a .255 hitting percentage (more than 20 points higher than second-place Princeton), and it has two of the five players in the Ivy League with at least 100 kills and a hitting percentage over .300 (Maclaine Fields and Christina Cornelius). Princeton swept Harvard last season, but the match in Boston was a 3-2 thriller.

Princeton ranks either first or second in the Ivy League in five major statistical categories (hitting percentage, opponent hitting percentage, assists, kills, and digs). Sophomore Natasha Skov continues to be the league's breakout player; the first-year starter leads the Ivies in kills (3.67) and points (4.09), and she showed impressive poise in a 16-kill performance at Yale. Harris leads the Ivy League and ranks 40th in the NCAA with 10.73 assists per set.

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