Women's Volleyball Opens Season with Three

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Harvard women's volleyball will begin its 2026 season with a three-match weekend against Fairfield, Holy Cross, and Northeastern. The Crimson's home opener is set for Friday, Sept. 4 at 7 p.m. ET against Fairfield (1-2) inside the Malkin Athletic Center. Harvard will take on Holy Cross (2-2) at 5 p.m. the following day also inside the MAC, before heading down the road to face Northeastern (0-2) at the Cabot Center on 2 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 6. What to Know - The Crimson finished 2025 with a 7-15 record, including a 6-8 bid in Ivy League play, and ended sixth in the Ivy League standings. - Harvard returns three of its strongest arms from last season in outside hitters Sofia Rossi and Ali Farquhar and middle blocker Ryleigh Patterson. Rossi led the team with 238 kills, while Farquhar (155) and Patterson (113) were third and fourth, respectively. - Patterson is set for a dominant senior year after finishing with 56 total blocks and 1.08 blocks/set in 2025. Her .356 hitting percentage last season now puts her fourth all-time in the Crimson record books in single-season hitting percentage. She also ranks eighth all time with 223 blocks assists and 10th with 266 total blocks. - Farquhar and middle blocker Bennett Trubey also prove big on defense at the net last year, totaling 49 and 37 total blocks, respectively. - Setter Sophia Wei also returns to the team after posting a great freshman season in 2025. Wei totaled 468 assists and 23 service aces in 2025, and she led the team with 167 digs on defense. - Patterson and junior Riley Resmer were selected by their teammates as team captains for the 2026 season. - Harvard is 7-4 all-time against Fairfield, 26-8 versus Holy Cross, and trails 0-2 against Northeastern. - Jennifer Weiss enters her 34th year leading the Crimson program, owning 384 career wins through her tenure. Up Next Havard heads to North Carolina for the UNCW Hampton Inn University Invitational on Sept. 11 and 12. The Crimson face UNC Asheville and Norfolk State at 10 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on Friday, before taking on host UNC Wilmington at 1 p.m. on Sat