Women's volleyball dominates Rider Invitational, blanks all its opponents

It was like one of those parties where a couple of kids show up, fill their pockets with food, and then leave right away, leaving everyone at the party to stand around and wonder:

Who invited them?

That was how the Fairleigh Dickinson, Sacred Heart, and Rider women's volleyball teams felt this weekend as Prince-ton ripped through the Rider Invi-tational, winning all three matches in Lawrenceville and never dropping a game.

The Tigers began their domination Friday with a 3-0 (30-19, 30-14, 30-24) sweep over host Rider. Junior outside hitter Kellie Cramm led the offense for Princeton, racking up team-highs in kills (18) and digs (20). Sophomore outside hitter Ashley Weber added ten kills and 13 digs, and freshman setter Jenny Senske dished out 40 assists.

Saturday, the Tigers finished their tournament sweep with 3-0 victories over Sacred Heart and Fairleigh Dickinson.

Princeton started the day with a 30-25, 30-15, 30-20 win over Sacred Heart.

The Pioneers dropped to 0-11 on the season after a match in which they converted on less than one percent of their kills.

Cramm had a team-high 11 kills and added 13 digs for the Tigers. Junior setter Michelle Becker led the team in two categories, racking up 20 assists and 14 digs. Senske picked up 13 assists.

The Tigers again cruised in the finale against Fairleigh Dickinson with a 30-16, 30-15, 30-24 victory. The 2-11 Knights were no match for a Princeton attack that combined for 52 kills.

Cramm and senior outside hitter Michelle Buffum led the way with 15 kills each. Weber chipped in 11 kills and 12 digs. Junior setter Kerry Song led the team with 20 digs, and Senske again did all the favors as she handed out a team-high 41 assists.

The Tigers have now won four straight since being swept by St. John's in the season opener. All five of their opponents this season have had at least 10 games experience behind them this season, yet Princeton is flourishing.

"We've gained a lot of confidence, particularly in one another, since the St. John's game," senior middle blocker Abby Studer said.

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"This weekend we did a much better job of executing our offense. We still have to work on cutting down on unforced errors and concentrating on exactly what we need to do out there."

"St. John's already had 12 games under their belt," Cramm said. "It's too bad we had to meet them as our first match, because the team is dramatically improving with each match we play."

Though the combined 5-33 record of Princeton's Rider Invitational foes may not seem like the best forum for spotting the flaws in their game, the Tigers are picking up on every little chink in the armor as the Ivy League season approaches.

"When we are on we play very well together," Cramm said, "but I still think we could work more as a team — covering the block, playing defense as a system instead of individuals. These are things that will come with more experience together."

Just one more weekend of preparation remains before conference play begins. Princeton hosts Long Island University Friday night and Juniata Saturday night before starting the Ivy season in Philadelphia against Penn on Oct. 4.

With the short period of non-conference play, the Tigers admit there is some uncertainty about what to expect.

"I think it will definitely be a winning season," Song said. "I'm excited to start league play. I think we might still be a little rusty in some areas, but time and practice will fix that."

"It's hard to say," Cramm added. "Of course improvements can always be made, but until league starts we don't really know where we sit."

One thing everyone could agree on is that Princeton would love to crash the Ivy League party the same as it did this weekend in Lawrenceville, with only a trail of smoke behind them leaving everyone wondering:

Who invited them?