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Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
Penn
Players Mentioned
Volleyball Rallies, Thrills Packed House With 3-2 Win Over Penn
September 24, 2011 | Women's Volleyball
Sabrina King won't soon forget the first Ivy League match of her head coaching career. In front of a raucous Dillon Gym crowd, Princeton rallied from deficits of 1-0 and 2-1 to defeat Penn, the reigning Ivy League champion, in another five-set thriller in the 2011 Ivy League opener.
There was no shortage of heroes for the Tigers, who improved to 8-5 on the season, 1-0 in the Ivy League. Princeton got a team-best 18 kills from junior outside Lydia Rudnick, while senior middle Cathryn Quinn added 15 kills and eight blocks. Junior rightside Jennifer Palmquist had one of the best matches of her career, recording 12 kills, seven blocks and hitting .476 for the match.
"We knew it was going to be a battle," King said after the 24-26, 25-19, 20-25, 25-21, 15-9 win. "It wasn't easy, it was rocky at times. That's why I'm so proud of them. They fought through it."
While the upperclassmen had a strong return to Ivy League play, Princeton also got a positive impact from its newcomers. Freshman Ginny Willis recorded 48 assists in her Ivy League debut, while outside Sarah Hanna recorded six kills and two blocks. Middle Nicole Kincade, who missed the last two weeks with an injury, returned with four kills and three blocks. Both Hanna and Kincade made key plays in the final two sets.
Senior libero Hillary Ford recorded a team-best 20 digs, although four players recorded at least 10 digs against an aggressive Penn squad. Sophomore Chelsea Parker had a terrific defensive match with 12 digs, while both Rudnick and Willis had 10 digs apiece.
After the two teams split the opening sets, Penn sprinted out to a big lead in the third and held off a Tiger charge for the 25-20 victory. Princeton came out aggressively in the fourth, but the Quakers rallied and held a brief 18-17 lead. With the set tied at 20-20, Rudnick recorded four straight kills to build a 24-20 lead, and Palmquist finished the set with a kill.
The fifth set stayed pretty even through the first 15 points, but a huge defensive stand at that point gave Princeton the advantage. After a Palmquist kill made it 9-7, Palmquist and Quinn combined for consecutive blocks to open a four-point lead. Quinn added a kill to bring the edge to five points. With the crowd ready to explode, Quinn and Hanna recorded a final block to clinch the 15-9 win and the match victory.
Princeton will continue its homestand next weekend when it hosts Harvard Sept. 30 at 7 and Dartmouth Oct. 1 at 4.