It’s hard to imagine that the volleyball team is in good spirits — not only did the Red drop two matches last weekend to fall to No. 4 in the Ivy standings, they’re also heading right back on the road this weekend to face Brown today and first-place Yale tomorrow. But head coach Deitre Collins-Parker and the rest of the team was so buoyed by their play in the five-set loss to Penn on Saturday that the confidence is flowing — even as they’re about to take on a Bulldog squad that handed the Red a resounding 25-16, 25-12, 25-13 defeat just two weeks ago.

Judging by the level of play and results, it was almost as if two different teams were representing Cornell in Newman Arena over the weekend. On Friday, the volleyball team was thoroughly outplayed by a dominant Yale squad, 25-16, 25-12, 25-13. The next day, the Red showed some jitters early on, but rebounded quickly to take a close match from Brown, 18-25, 25-21, 27-25, 25-23.

Being a “rebuilding team” has its ups and downs. On the downside, you’re probably not going to have a record-breaking season if you are still trying to get settled. The upside, though, is that after that first, really tough year, you might just come out and surprise everyone — including yourself. The volleyball team struggled last season and during this year’s preseason as well. But tonight, the Red has a chance to put the past behind it as it takes on Yale, at home, for sole possession of first place in the Ivy League, followed by a match tomorrow afternoon against Brown.

The women’s soccer team could not utilize its home field advantage on Saturday and fell to Yale, 3-1. While the Red (1-9-1, 0-4 Ivy) has been largely unsuccessful in Ivy play, the Bulldogs (7-5-1, 2-2) have been on the rise, winning their last two games.

The frustration continued for the men’s soccer team as the Red suffered a 3-0 loss to Yale at Berman Field on Saturday. With the loss, Cornell remains winless in Ivy League play and the squad’s current losing skid has now reached five games.