Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
St. Francis
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Men's Volleyball Sweeps St. Francis To Move Into Second Place
March 16, 2007 | Men's Volleyball
The Princeton men's volleyball team made a bad day for the St. Francis men's volleyball team even worse. After a nine-hour bus ride, courtesy of the winter storm and troubles on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, the Tigers rallied for key wins in the first two games of a 3-0 EIVA Tait win over the Red Flash. Mike Vincent led Princeton with 12 kills, and his service run in the middle game was the key point of the match.
Vincent was one of three Princeton players with double-digit kills, as both Peter Eichler and Reid Joseph chipped in with 11 kills apiece. Senior middle Evan Pasion had seven kills in 11 swings for a .636 attack percentage, and sophomore setter Brandon Denham led the Tigers with 42 assists and seven digs. Princeton continued to serve well, hitting nine aces, including four from Vincent.
Princeton trailed 19-14 in the opening game, but it went on a 7-2 run off the serving of Vincent and Denham. Back-to-back aces by Eichler put Princeton ahead, and a pair of blocks from Denham and Vincent helped Princeton open a sizable lead that it would never relinquish in a 30-26 win. The Red Flash came out strong in the second game and never let the Tigers get an early run of points. St. Francis maintained a lead, albeit a slim one, until three straight kills by Vincent pushed the Tigers back even at 22 apiece. When he was moved off the net in the rotation, he simply did his work from the service line. With the score tied at 25, Vincent served a 4-0 run, which included three aces, two of which were never touched by a Red Flash player. A kill by Pasion ended the 30-26 win and gave Princeton a significant 2-0 lead.
The third game stayed close until the midway point, when the Red Flash ran out of gas and the Tigers took advantage. With the score tied at 18, Princeton went on a 12-3 run to close both the game and the match. The critical 7-0 run came on Denham serves and featured a blend of Princeton kills and St. Francis miscues. The talented and gutsy St. Francis squad, which reached the 2006 EIVA final, simply couldn't make one last run against a Princeton team that played arguably its best match of the season.
Princeton is now 7-6, 5-3 in the Tait Division. Five teams all have three Tait Division losses, meaning the last month will determine the difference between a bye to the EIVA semifinals (for the second-place team) and a four-match road to the league title (for the fifth- and sixth-place teams). Two of those squads will face off at Dillon Gym tomorrow, when 5-3 Princeton hosts 3-3 Juniata at 4:00 in Dillon Gym. Juniata picked up a 3-2 home win over Princeton earlier in the season.