Men's volleyball hopes to clinch spot in EIVA postseason

This weekend, the men’s volleyball team will play home games against Harvard and Sacred Heart, on Friday and Saturday, respectively. The men have faced a tough season so far; they are 11-12 overall, though they are 7-5 in conference play. It is the final weekend of the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association’s regular season, and the Tigers control whether they will qualify for postseason play.

The Tigers beat Harvard 3-2 earlier in the season, but fell to Sacred Heart 3-1. Both games were close, and Princeton will be looking to increase its win percentage this weekend.

Harvard currently holds a 9-12 overall record, but lost twice last weekend, including once in conference play. Harvard’s recent underperformance will help the Tigers, who ended a three-game losing streak by beating George Mason last Saturday, 3-1. The Tigers hope that win will provide them enough momentum to win both of this weekend’s home games, which would make them level with the No. 3 seed in the conference. Sacred Heart (13-10) holds the best overall record in the conference, but lost its most recent game against Saint Francis University. That loss makes Princeton the only team entering the weekend on a winning streak.

The conference is close this season, with four teams fighting for a postseason berth. One of them will clinch the final spot; another will finish second-to-last. This weekend, Princeton will face two of those teams — Harvard and Sacred Heart.

This weekend is also senior weekend, honoring two Princeton players: setter Jonah May and setter/opposite Kurt Thiemann, who are looking to extend their final season by qualifying for next weekend’s EIVA Championships.

The team will play Harvard on Friday at 7 p.m. and Sacred Heart on Saturday at 4 p.m. at Dillon Gymnasium.