No. 10 Men’s Volleyball Falls to No. 2 UCLA in Five-Set Thriller

Monday, January 6

Princeton, N.J.

2:00 PM

Princeton University

0-3

#2 UCLA

3-0

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Final F
UCLA	25	26	33	16	15	3
Princeton	17	24	35	25	10	2

Photo by: Beverly Schaefer

No. 10 Men’s Volleyball Falls to No. 2 UCLA in Five-Set Thriller

January 06, 2020 | Men's Volleyball

Box Score

PRINCETON, N.J. – The No. 10 Princeton University men's volleyball team took the No. 2 University of California, Los Angeles down to the wire Monday afternoon inside Dillon Gymnasium, battling back from a 2-0 deficit to force a fifth set but coming up just short 3-2 (25-17, 26-24, 35-33, 16-25, 15-10).

The Tigers gave the second-ranked Bruins, who were playing their first-ever match inside Dillon Gymnasium, all they could handle and were led by senior George Huhmann who joined the 1000-kill club during the match. He had a team-high 16 kills along with four total blocks and four digs for the Tigers. Senior Parker Dixon added 12 kills while junior Joe Kelly handed out a team-high 37 assists along with a team-high seven digs. Senior Greg Luck led the Tigers in blocks with six.

While the Bruins came out on top 25-17 in the first set, the Tigers pushed UCLA to their limit in the second set. Down 19-15, a kill by sophomore Jerod Nelsen led a 3-0 run that also featured a kill by sophomore Nate Thompson and a double block by Kelly and sophomore Attila Delingat that made it a 19-18 contest. A kill by Huhmann knotted the score at 24-24, but UCLA held on for the 26-24 triumph.

The third set was a marathon that saw Princeton hold off set point an incredible 10 times. Down 25-24, a Dixon kill tied the score a nine-straight set points would follow for UCLA. With the Bruins ahead 33-32, a UCLA service error would knot the score then an attacking error gave the Tigers a 34-33 advantage. The Tigers would then prevail in the set 35-33 after a double block at the net Nelsen and Luck.

Stuffed!

Tigers with some juice in the third!

Off to a 7-5 lead! pic.twitter.com/f9FHrVEFAa
— PrincetonVolley (@PrincetonVolley) January 6, 2020

UCLA looked to make amends in the fourth set, using an early 4-0 run to take a 6-2 lead. Princeton would take the lead at 10-9 on a UCLA attacking error and not look back from there. Ahead 22-16, the Tigers ended the set on a 3-0 run thanks a pair of errors by the Bruins and am emphatic kill by Nelsen, coming out on top 25-16 and sending the match to a decisive fifth set.

Perfectly Placed!

Tigers And Bruins tied, 8-8, early in Set 4. pic.twitter.com/bfMsLJgI1v
— PrincetonVolley (@PrincetonVolley) January 6, 2020

The Bruins opened the fifth set on a 5-0 run, but Princeton responded with a 3-0 run featuring a UCLA service error along with a Huhmann kill and a double block by Kelly and Thompson. The Bruins would take a 13-18 lead but a service error and a Thompson kill narrowed the margin to 13-10. Despite Princeton's valiant effort to battle back and force a fifth set, UCLA would outlast the Tigers 15-10 in the final set.

Up Next
The Tigers will open Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) play at the University of Charleston (0-2) on Friday, December 10 at 7 p.m. inside the Wehrle Innovation Center.