Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
NJIT (EIVA First Round)
Grit, Pasion Lead Men's Volleyball To Playoff Win Over NJIT
April 19, 2006 | Men's Volleyball
April 19, 2006
PRINCETON - The Princeton men's volleyball team didn't outscore NJIT by much Wednesday night, but it pulled out just enough points to advance to the EIVA quarterfinals Saturday night at Rutgers-Newark. Led by a 15-kill, 0-error performance by Evan Pasion and a critical win in the second game, the Tigers took out NJIT 3-1 in their final home match.
All of the four games were decided by two points, and each of the first three were extended into extra points. Including their regular season match, a 3-2 Princeton win, each of the last six games played between the two teams were decided by two points apiece.
Princeton dropped the opener 32-30 when the Highlanders came out on fire and hit .450 in the game. Leonardo Paludo had nine kills in 13 swings and Amobi Armstrong hit .625 in the win.
NJIT threatened to hold a 2-0 lead when it served a game ball four times in the second tilt. The Highlanders' first game ball came at 31-30, but senior captain Jack Pichard came back with a kill. NJIT dropped its second chance on a service error. Trailing 39-38, freshman middle Michael Vincent evened the score with a kill, and then caught a break on another NJIT service miscue. At 40-40, a pair of Highlander errors gave Princeton the win and momentum.
Both teams stayed close in the third game, with neither team grabbing more than a three-point lead after the early portion of the game. NJIT fought off a pair of game balls, but at 30-30, Princeton pulled ahead with kills from Vincent and Ryn Burns to grab the 32-30 win. The Tigers threatened to run away with the fourth game by jumping out to a 10-2 lead. Princeton got two of Peter Eichler's game-high four aces on back-to-back serves; both serves clipped the top of the net and dropped in nearly the exact same spot. The gutsy Highlander team, which starts a majority of underclassmen, slowly battled back and finally evened the score on a solo block from Eduardo Welter at 28-28.
Princeton wouldn't allow NJIT to jump ahead. Pasion recorded his 15th kill to open a 29-28 lead, and then Pichard recorded his final kill ever at Dillon Gym to claim a 30-28 match-clinching score.
Eichler led Princeton with 21 kills and hit .381, while Pasion led all players with a .556 attack percentage. Freshman setter Brandon Denham led all players with 68 assists, wjile senior Mark Stevens led Princeton with eight digs. Vincent had seven blocks, while Denham and Pasion both recorded six.
Paludo led all players with 27 kills, while Welter added 22.
Princeton will now face Rutgers-Newark in the EIVA quarterfinal. Rutgers swept Princeton, although the Tigers forced Rutgers to five games in one match. The winner will compete against Penn State Thursday night in the league semifinal.