Penn state a tall order for EIVA semis

When David battled Goliath, they fought with slingshots and rocks. When the men's volleyball team travels to No. 7 Penn State tonight, it will fight using a smooth, round ball.

Coming off an impressive five-game victory over Juniata on Sunday in the opening round of the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) playoffs, the Tigers are hoping to repeat this mythical battle and unseat a volleyball giant in the EIVA semifinals.

"We are huge underdogs and have nothing to lose," junior captain and outside hitter Peter Eichler said. "Sometimes that can be a great weapon."

In the two meetings between Princeton (12-9 overall, 6-6 EIVA) and Penn State (20-7, 12-0) this season, the Nittany Lions — seeded first in the EIVA tournament — have swept all six games. In fact, the fourth-seeded Tigers haven't taken a single game against Penn State since beating the Nittany Lions for the EIVA title in 1998. Tonight, however, marks Princeton's return to the EIVA Final Four after a four-year absence, and perhaps this year will be different.

In last Sunday's match against Juniata, the Tigers and Eagles went to five games for the fourth time in as many meetings between the two schools, and this time Princeton came out ready to battle in game five. The Tigers dominated offensively and defensively to make their way back to the semifinals.

"It feels good to be back," head coach Glenn Nelson said after Sunday's game.

Nelson is proud of the way the Tigers have been practicing and is excited to take on Penn State in the semis. Nelson never lets his players get ahead of themselves, however. Feeling the Tigers should have beaten Juniata in three games, Nelson commented that, "As smart as they are, they just don't think sometimes."

To come away with the upset tonight, Princeton will have to do more than just think. Every aspect of the team's game will have to be at its best.

"We have to pass extremely well and not ever let them get on any runs," Eichler said. "If we hang around with them until the late stages of games, you never know what can happen."

Princeton will turn to its outside hitters, Eichler and sophomore Phillip Rosenberg. Eichler's season earned him EIVA's All-East second team honors, while Rosenberg has surged both offensively and defensively in the second half of the season. Eichler and Rosenberg lead the team in kills, with 289 and 213, respectively, and digs, at 149 and 145.

But sophomore setter Brandon Denham will have plenty of other options in addressing the ball. These include sophomore middle hitter Mike Vincent, who joined Eichler on All-East second-team this past week, and senior outside hitter Reid Joseph, who was selected to the EIVA All-Academic team.

Senior middle hitter Evan Pasion, who played a pivotal role in Sunday's victory over Juniata and leads the team with a .394 hitting percentage, will also be a presence in front of the net.

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The Nittany Lions have no shortage of weapons of their own. Outside hitters Matt Anderson and Alex Gutor lead Penn State with 402 and 361 kills, respectively, compared to Eichler's Princetonhigh 289.

At setter, Denham and Nittany Lion Luke Murray are incredibly evenly matched, each averaging 12.5 assists per game.

The same could be said of the middles, as Vincent and Penn State counterpart Max Holt both average just under 1.2 blocks per game.

If everything clicks for the Tigers, a victory isn't out of their reach.

"We have been working hard this week in practice to get prepared for what is obviously a tough, tough match," Eichler said. "I think everyone knows what we're up against, but we're also really excited to face such a great team and do the best we can."

Fans in Penn State's Rec Hall might be reminded of a biblical story tonight, told by some upset-hungry Tigers with nothing to lose.