M. volleyball looks forward to Penn State, overcomes NJIT

Ever wonder how David felt right before he faced Goliath? This Saturday, the men's volleyball team will know just how he felt when it takes on fifth-ranked Penn State at Dillon.

The Nittany Lions are a juggernaut when it comes to men's volleyball. After sweeping Concordia on Apr. 6, Penn State claimed its 14th Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) divisional title. In preparation for the weekend, though, the Tigers faced nearby New Jersey Institute of Technology last night. Princeton won the match 3-1, with scores of 30-27, 29-31, 30-16, and 30-26 in the respective sets.

The Nittany Lions are 20-3 overall and a perfect 12-0 in the EIVA Tait division. Prior to falling to Loyola on Mar. 22, Penn State managed to rip off 16 victories in row. They are simply a very solid team.

To say that Princeton (15-11) is going to have its work cut out for it this weekend would be a gross understatement, but the Tigers do have a couple things working in their favor.

First and foremost, Princeton has played PSU before and should know what to expect from the Nittany Lion offense. Though the Tigers suffered the same fate as many of Penn State's opponents earlier in the year — Princeton was swept in three games on Feb. 9 — the Tigers did not go down without a fight.

After losing the first game 30-12, Princeton regrouped and forced the Nittany Lions to earn their victory. In games two and three the Tigers fell by scores of 30-24 and 30-25 respectively, establishing their level of competition at the elite level.

Nevertheless, to upset Penn State this weekend, Princeton will have to do more than just compete. It will need to be flawless in virtually every phase of the game. Penn State is an experienced team that does not make many mistakes, and the Tigers cannot afford to commit too many errors if they hope to walk away with the win.

One factor that may work in Princeton's favor is that, this time around, the Tigers will have homecourt advantage. Any team, no matter how good it is, can be vulnerable on the road. If the Tigers are going to knock off a championship caliber team like Penn State, they will definitely need a pumped crowd cheering them on.

Of all the factors that could enable Princeton to steal one from the Nittany Lions, the most important is probably confidence.

Penn State heads into the matchup with confidence and they expect to once again sweep its less heralded opponent.

Princeton enters the match with some confidence of its own, especially after recently defeating a talented Rutgers team. Although the Tigers have dropped some games against lesser teams, men's volleyball has been known to show up for big games, as evidenced by their victories over the Scarlet Raiders and arch-rival Juniata. Saturday's contest will give Princeton another chance to play giant-killer.

Above all else, the Tigers should be relaxed versus Penn State, even though it is their last home match of the season. Most people expect the Nittany Lions to walk all over Princeton and that should only serve to make things more difficult for them. Playing the role of favorite is never easy.

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As the underdog, the Tigers have nothing to lose. In all likelihood, Princeton will make the EIVA tournament regardless of the outcome on Saturday night.

Defeating Penn State would be a remarkable way to end the regular season, as improbable as it seems. But then again, not many people gave David a chance against Goliath, and we all know how that one turned out.