Men's volleyball falters early, comes on strong in final three sets in 3-1 victory over NYU

As men's volleyball's coach ambled off the court following his team's 3-1 victory over New York University at Dillon Gym last night, he was muttering under his breath.

Though the Tigers had come back to win after dropping the first set, he was irritated that his team needed an embarrassing first-set loss to start playing with emotion.

"It's sad we had to hand them the first game before we were ready to play," Nelson grumbled. "When this team has to supply its own emotion, this team isn't very good."

Indeed, the Tigers (4-3 overall, 3-1 Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association) were lackluster at best in the first set, which they dropped 25-30, to an inferior NYU team. Without sophomore opposite Dennis Alshuler — who sat out the first set with a shoulder injury but returned for the rest of the match —Princeton had trouble putting points away against the Violets.

Throughout the match, NYU displayed hustle and spirit, which aggravated the Tigers.

"NYU came in here with that high school stuff — cheers and chants that really pissed us off," Nelson said. "That stuff leads to a lot of finger-pointing, but that's their style. And getting [pissed off] was what it took to get us into the match."

With the entry of Alshuler, the Tigers were instantly a better team. After taking the second set, 30-18, Princeton wore the Violets down in the third set, jumping to 23-16 lead. From there, the Tigers coasted, winning 30-24 on a put-away by Alshuler and regaining control of the match.

"Adding Dennis (Alshuler) in the second game was the key," NYU assistant coach Ed Caesar said. "We knew that without Dennis in there, we had a shot. But when they put Dennis in the game, their talent took over."

In the fourth set, Princeton and NYU went back and forth for a while. With the score knotted at 19, the two teams traded points until the score was tied at 24, at which point the Tigers made their move. Led by freshman setter Jason Liljestrom, who, according to senior outside hitter Blair Anderson, came up with some "platinum blocks," Princeton won the next five points to gain a 29-24 edge. NYU won the next point, but then senior middle hitter Ryan Black put the set and match away with a thunderous kill.

The Tigers have a critical weekend ahead of them, facing Juniata Friday followed by perennial foe Penn State Saturday. Both of these games are on the road.

"We're just trying to get as much momentum as possible for Penn State," Alshuler said. "We're going to have to play up to our potential if we're going to have a chance to beat them."