Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
Cal-Baptist
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NAIA Power Cal-Baptist Sweeps Men's Volleyball
January 28, 2011 | Men's Volleyball
Despite nine kills from freshman Jeff Stapleton and 20 assists from classmate Davis Waddell, the Princeton men's volleyball team fell to Cal-Baptist, the No. 1 team in the latest NAIA national poll. Princeton will complete its season-opening trip Friday night against Hope International in a match to be played at Biola University.
Princeton started a trio of freshmen in its second match of the season, including rightside Brad Howard, who added a kill, a service ace and a block. Stapleton added three digs and an ace while hitting .167 for the match, while Waddell had two digs and an ace. Waddell helped Princeton to a .300 hitting percentage in the opening set of a 25-21, 25-19, 25-22 loss, but the Lancers raised their defensive level over the final two sets and ultimately limited the Tigers to a .115 percentage for the match.
Senior co-captain Vincent Tuminelli had six kills and four digs, while sophomore middle Michael Dye added five kills and two blocks for a Princeton team that tried to dig out of a big first-set hole, but never came all the way back from an early 6-1 deficit. Princeton started much faster in the second set, but Cal-Baptist controlled the second half of the set for a 25-19 win.
The third set would prove to be the closest, as both teams would side out from 16-all to 21-all, when a Dye kill evened the score. A late ace and two blocks for the Lancers would give the hosts the late edge for their seventh win of the season.