Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
Rutgers-Newark
Players Mentioned
Men's Volleyball Moves Into Second With 3-0 Win Over Rutgers
March 06, 2007 | Men's Volleyball
A dominant hitting performance and strong individual efforts from both Peter Eichler and Reid Joseph helped the Princeton men's volleyball team move into second place with a 3-0 victory over Rutgers-Newark. The win moved Princeton a half game ahead of George Mason, who will come to Dillon Gym Friday night for a crucial 7 p.m. showdown.
The Tigers improved to 6-5, 4-2 in the EIVA Tait Division with a 30-17, 30-27, 30-23 victory. The loss drops Rutgers-Newark, which is suffering a down season after the graduation of a talented Class of 2006, to 2-15 overall, 0-7 in the division.
Joseph had 13 kills in 15 swings for a match-best .867 hitting percentage. He hit 1.000 in the middle game and only had one missed kill in both the first and third games. Teammate Eichler had match highs in kills (15) and aces (six), and he tied for a team-best four digs. Sophomore middle Mike Vincent also hit above .500 with nine kills in 13 swings, while freshman Jeff McCown came off the bench for three kills in four swings during the fourth game. Sophomore setter Brandon Denham had a match-best 47 assists to go along with four digs.
After a dominant first game, Princeton couldn't pull away from the Scarlet Raiders in the second game. With the score tied at 26, Princeton got a kill from Joseph and an attack error to build the crucial two-point lead. Eichler added an ace to get a game ball, and the Tigers closed the game with another Joseph kill to claim the 30-27 win. A 5-0 service run by Denham midway through the third game helped Princeton pull away for its fourth divisional win.