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Women's volleyball struggles in Ivy League play

PU WVB vs. Seton Hall
Princeton University women's volleyball vs. Seton Hall, Princeton, N.J., September 6, 2017.

This past weekend, the women’s volleyball team travelled to Cornell and Columbia to complete the first half of its Ivy League competition. Despite entering the weekend with a perfect record, the Tigers stumbled against both the Bears and the Lions, knocking the Princeton team off the top spot in the Ivy League standings. They are now tied with Harvard for second.

The Tigers opened the weekend with their match against Cornell. Despite edging out the Bears in a tight first set, the Tigers never quite regained their footing, hitting only .109 for the night. Cornell would rebound in the second and third sets and carry out their win with a strong performance in the fourth, defeating Princeton 3-1. The upset put the two-time reigning Ivy League champions into a three-way tie for first place.

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Princeton finished the week in New York, where the team took on the Lions. Despite strong performances from many players, it was Columbia that made crucial plays down the stretch. Trading blows for blows, the Lions took hold of the fifth set and beat the Tigers 15-8 for the win. The loss knocked the Princeton squad out of the top spot for the first time since 2015.

While the pair of losses certainly put a minor dent in the Tiger’s championships hopes, the Princeton team has seen worse before. Indeed, two years ago the Orange and Black opened their season in a 0-3 hole, which they ultimately climbed out of in order to tie Harvard for the Ivy League title.

Undoubtedly, the Princeton team will be looking to regain their lost momentum in their next match, when the Tigers will travel to the Palestra in order to face Penn. The Tigers swept the Quakers in their season opener, but this time they will not have the support of their home crowd.

With the stakes raised, fans of Princeton volleyball will be watching intently as the Tigers look to reclaim the top spot in the Ivy League.

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