Princeton University Athletics
Men's Volleyball Begins Playoff Push With Critical Home Weekend
March 25, 2004 | Men's Volleyball
March 25, 2004
PRINCETON - The top four teams in the EIVA host playoff quarterfinals. Princeton men's volleyball team sits in fourth currently, and desperately wants to keep that position. This weekend, the Tigers will look to fortify that position during three consecutive home matches.
If recent results are any indication, home court would help Princeton (10-6, 4-4 EIVA Tait) significantly in the league quarterfinal. The two most likely opponents in that match would be Springfield (5-11, 3-7) and George Mason (4-12, 2-5). Princeton split with both of those teams, winning at home and losing on the road.
Neither teams will be traveling to Dillon Gym this weekend. On Friday at 7 p.m., Princeton will play host to St. Francis (10-14, 2-8). Despite being in last place in the Tait Division, the Red Flash have won two of their last three league matches, including a five-game win over George Mason. The Flash also took third-place Juniata to five games and won a game over first-place Penn State. At 4:00 on Saturday, it will be No. 8 Penn State coming to Dillon Gym. The Nittany Lions (13-5, 6-0) are again the team to beat in the EIVA, although they had to rally from 2-0 down to defeat Juniata earlier in the week. Penn State has won 13 straight contests against Princeton, including a 3-0 win in the 2003 EIVA semifinals. The Nittany Lions are led by Keith Kowal, the league leader in hitting percentage (.568) and Dan O'Dell, who is third in the league in digs (13.37).
The weekend ends in a rematch with Juniata on Sunday at 2:00. The Eagles (11-3, 5-3) swept Princeton 3-0 at home early in the season, and a win would basically clinch at least third place in the league going into the postseason. Ricky Ziegler leads the EIVA in assists (13.43), while Brian Dinning is tops in aces (0.63).
Princeton will need a more consistent weekend to feel good about its postseason positioning. The middle hitting recently has been very good, as Sean Vitousek has become as reliable an option over the last three weeks as Brian Hamming. The latter is seventh in the league in attack percentage at .451, while Vitousek has jumped into the Top 15 by placing 10th (.423). Blake Robinson still gets the most swings, and only two players in the Tait Division have more kills per game than Robinson, who averages 4.41. Defensively, Princeton is the top team in the division, averaging 9.24 digs per game, but as a team, the Tigers are near the bottom in hitting percentage.