Princeton University Athletics
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Volleyball Looks To Change Fortunes Against EIVA Unbeaten George Mason
February 16, 2011 | Men's Volleyball
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The last time Princeton and George Mason met in men's volleyball, a berth in the EIVA championship match was the prize. At stake Friday night will be something far less prestigious, but for Princeton, it might be just as important. Following a rough start in divisional play, the Tigers will look to change their fortunes against one of the Tait frontrunners.
Princeton comes into the three-match homestand with a 1-7 record, including an 0-3 mark in the EIVA Tait Division, and it has lost all four matches since its return from California. The Tigers got a challenging early-season schedule within the Tait; each of their first three matches were on the road, including a match at 2010 NCAA finalist Penn State on Saturday.
Winning on the road within the Tait has never been easy for Princeton, and last year serves as a prime example. The Tigers earned the No. 2 seed in the playoffs despite winning only one road match in the regular season; that victory came late in the regular season at George Mason. In fact, Princeton split against every team in the Tait except for Penn State and Mason; the Tigers went 0-3 against Penn State, but they went 3-0 against Mason.
The Tigers have gotten strong play from their outsides, including freshman Jeff Stapleton, who is averaging a team-high 3.33 points per set. Senior co-captain Vincent Tuminelli is right behind with 3.29 points per set, and he leads the team with 2.9 kills per set.
Hitting efficiency on both sides of the ball has plagued Princeton, and that will be something head coach Sam Shweisky will look to fix starting Friday night. The Tigers rank 10th of 11 teams in offensive hitting percentage (.207), and ninth in opponent hitting percentage (.298).
Mason ranks in the top five in both categories and has been led offensively by Mark Jones, who ranks second in the EIVA with 5.0 kills per set this season. Junior Shaun Sibley ranks second in the league with 1.56 blocks per set, and Mason ranks first as a team in that category.
The last time these teams played at Jadwin, Princeton won a 30-23, 28-30, 33-21, 23-30, 17-15 thriller; the Tigers rallied from a 7-2 deficit in the fifth set after getting a 23-kill effort from Tuminelli.