Women's volleyball struggles against taller foes

Sometimes size does matter, as the women's volleyball team learned this past weekend in a tough tournament at Rutgers on Friday and Saturday. Competing against two of the biggest teams the Tigers have faced this year, Princeton was physically outsized by Rutgers — which had five players over six feet tall — and New Hampshire, which had seven players surpassing the six-foot mark. For the Tigers, one of the smaller teams in the tournament, this weekend proved that there are times when bigger is better.

Princeton opened the tournament with a three-game loss to Rutgers Friday night.

"Rutgers had one of the fastest tempo offenses we've faced, so the middles had to work very hard to stop them," assistant coach Cathy Skinner said. "There were moments when we really hung well with them."

But in the end, the Tigers fell 15-4, 15-9, 15-8. Senior outside hitter Sabrina King recorded a team high seven kills, while sophomore Michelle Buffum contributed defensively with six digs.

Repeat

Princeton next returned to Rutgers on Saturday morning to beat St. Peter's in three straight games, 15-12, 15-10, 15-11. Buffum led the team with a strong offensive performance, recording a game-high 15 kills. Freshman rightside hitter Kellie Cramm played a key defensive role in the Tigers' victory with 15 digs. The game marked the second time Princeton has defeated St. Peter's this season.

Later in the afternoon, the Tigers struggled in their third match of the tournament against UNH.

"We played quiet and tired," Skinner said. "The first game was close, but after we lost, they gained momentum and we went downhill."

At the net, Buffum led from the outside with 11 kills, while senior blocker Emily Brown recorded the same number of kills from the middle. Defensively, King and junior setter Ana Yoerg stood out with 13 digs apiece.

New Hampshire quickly earned the upper hand, however, and went on to beat Princeton 15-11, 15-7, 15-10.

"The New Hampshire game was a more frustrating loss [than Rutgers]," Brown said. "They were also a great team, but we saw early on that we had the potential to play with them. There were several times throughout the match when we either held the lead or overcame large point spreads, but we were never able to sustain for the whole game."

"We did a lot of things really well," Brown added. "But in the end we defeated ourselves with our inconsistency."

Though the two losses at the Rutgers tournament are disappointing for Princeton, the team will use the experience against bigger and faster opponents to prepare for what lies ahead.

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"Playing really competitive teams like Rutgers and New Hampshire will help raise our own level of competition during the next few weeks, especially once we enter Ivy League play," junior defensive specialist Martha Moore said.

The Tigers, now 6-3 on the season, are gearing up to play St. Peter's for a third time this Wednesday in Jersey City.