Princeton University Athletics
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Volleyball Hopes To Continue Win Streak Saturday Against Rutgers
February 13, 2009 | Men's Volleyball
Riding its first win streak of the season, the Princeton men's volleyball team will return to Dillon Gym Saturday at 4 p.m. to take on EIVA Hay Division front-runner Rutgers-Newark.
Princeton is 3-4, 1-1 in the Tait Division, and is coming off a dramatic road win at St. Francis and its first home win of the season, a 3-1 victory over NYU. Over the last two matches, Princeton has gotten strong play up and down the lineup, including first-year starter Vincent Tuminelli. Replacing four-year starter Peter Eichler '08 may have seemed like a daunting challenge, but Tuminelli has averaged 4.0 kills and 1.78 digs per game over the last two matches. Senior middle Mike Vincent, the hero of Saturday's comeback win over St. Francis, is averaging 3.56 kills, 1.11 blocks and is hitting .510 in the last two matches, while fellow middle Jeff McCown is averaging 2.44 kills and is hitting .462 over that same stretch.
As he has over the last four years, senior setter and captain Brandon Denham is leading the team with solid two-way play. He is averaging 13.89 assists and 1.67 digs per game during the two-match win streak.
Saturday will be one of Princeton's final two matches in February; this Tuesday, the Tigers head north to NJIT for a key Tait Division match. The Highlanders have won two in a row over Princeton, including a 3-2 comeback win in last year's EIVA quarterfinal. NJIT is 0-3 in the division, although one loss came via a 16-14 fifth-game loss to Springfield. The Feb. 17 match will begin at 7 p.m.