Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
UC Irvine
Men's Volleyball Falls To No. 11 UC-Irvine In Season Opener
January 25, 2005 | Men's Volleyball
Jan. 26, 2005
Box Score
IRVINE, Calif. - The men's volleyball team opened its 2005 season Tuesday evening with a 3-0 loss to the No. 11 U.C.-Irvine Anteaters in front of 371 fans at Crawford Court. Irvine, which had already played seven competitive matches this season, took advantage of the rusty Tigers in short order.
Princeton fell to 0-1 when it dropped a 30-25, 30-22, 30-18 decision to Irvine.
Early errors gave the Anteaters the quick lead in the first game, but Princeton showed fight midway through the game to run off five straight points and get back into the game. It wouldn't be enough, though, as Irvine got back on track and, thanks to a -.056 hitting percentage for Princeton, took a 30-25 victory.
Princeton had an early 13-11 lead in the second game, but All-EIVA middle Brian Hamming suffered an injury on an attack and left the match. Irvine capitalized from there, going on a 19-9 run to close out the second game. The Anteaters hit .538 to cruise to a victory in the third game.
The match marked the first start for Peter Eichler, an outside hitter from Pacific Palisades, Calif. The rookie led Princeton with seven kills, but he also recorded 10 errors. As a team, Princeton had 26 kills and 22 errors.
Junior Jack Pichard recorded 24 assists and seven digs in his first match as the fulltime setter. He replaces Jason Liljestrom, the 2004 team captain who graduated last May.
Princeton returns to action Wednesday night when it faces California-Baptist, a top-ranked NAIA team that recently took No. 1 UCLA to five games before falling in a thriller.