Men's volleyball fails in upset bid against Penn St., Juniata

Coming into the toughest weekend of its 2004 season, the men's volleyball team was hoping to finish at least 2-1 in three very important matches. On consecutive days the Tigers faced Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association rivals St. Francis, Penn State and Juniata on their home court at Dillon Gymnasium.

In an ideal world, Princeton (10-7 overall, 5-6 EIVA) would have liked to win all three games, rolling over mediocre St. Francis on Friday and then upsetting league powerhouses Penn State (14-6, 7-1) and Juniata (12-5, 6-4) on Saturday and Sunday. Realistically, however, the Tigers hoped to beat St. Francis and then split the games against the EIVA's top two teams.

On Friday, Princeton came through in the first leg of the weekend-long volleyball marathon, rolling over St. Francis by a 3-0 count. The Tigers won with a balanced offensive effort that was led by senior setter Jason Liljetrom's 38 assists and junior outside hitter Blake Robinson's 14 kills.

The lone trouble spot of the match came early in the first game, when sloppy play led Princeton to dig themselves into a hole. But sophomore opposite Jack Pichard, the Tigers' best server, reeled off a string of tough serves that led to a 9-0 Princeton run. After that streak of points St. Francis was on the defensive for the rest of the game, and the Tigers' taller, more aggressive hitters were able to put the ball away.

On Saturday, Princeton faced its toughest opponent of the season thus far, Penn State. The No. 8 Nittany Lions are traditionally the EIVA's top dog, but nonetheless Princeton was hoping for an upset. Sophomore outside hitter Brian Hamming led the charge for the underdogs, with hitting percentage of .765 for the match. But Hamming's efforts were outdone by the hitting prowess of Penn State's Keith Kowal, whose 17 kills without an error gave him a whopping .773 hit percentage.

The Tigers played the Nittany Lions tough in the first and third games, but clutch hits by Kowal and a run of tough serves by Matt Proper allowed Penn State to close out Princeton in the third game. The 3-0 sweep was tough for the Tigers to swallow, especially on their home court.

Princeton soon had a chance to atone for its loss, however, when it hosted Juniata on Sunday.

Juniata, second in the league, had swept the Tigers 3-0 at home earlier this season, but Princeton's young squad has made significant strides since then and was looking to give the Eagles a much tougher game.

The match started better than anyone expected for Princeton, with the home crowd spurring the Tigers to a 2-0 lead. Unfortunately for Princeton, Blake Robinson turned his ankle midway through the third game, and the Tiger offense couldn't survive without their best hitter. Juniata took the third game, 30-28, then won the fourth, 30-24, to even the match at two games apiece.

Playing without Robinson, the Tigers relied on Hamming for consistent offense, and the sophomore's efforts allowed Princeton to stay neck and neck with Juniata in the fifth and final frame. The favored Eagles refused to cave under the pressure, however, and squeaked out a 15-13 victory to win the match.

The loss drops Princeton's league record to 5-6. The Tigers will still be able to retain fourth place in the EIVA if they can win two of their final three games.