Kill, dig, ace. To the women's volleyball team (1-2), these are not just words but crucial statistics. The higher these numbers climb, the greater the Tigers' chance of victory.
Princeton opened its season this past weekend by killing, digging and acing its way through the Big Orange Tournament at Syracuse University. After a successful 2006 season, the Tigers entered this tournament looking to start the 2007 season with a bang, taking on some particularly challenging teams to prepare them for tough Ivy League foes later in the fall.
"The past years, we've played some easy matches in the preseason," junior middle blocker Lindsey Ensign said. "In the end it hasn't really helped us out because we've seen our toughest competition in the Ivy League. With our difficult schedule in our preseason [this year], we are going to learn to play to a higher level."
Princeton started the weekend slowly, dropping matches to Syracuse, 3-2, and to Texas Tech, 3-1. The team ended the tournament on a high note, though, with a 3-2 win against Fordham.
The Tigers proved to be evenly-matched with Syracuse on Friday night despite their eventual 3-2 loss. Princeton started off with a 30-27 win in the opening game, but went on to lose the next two games to the host team by margins of two and six points, respectively.
Undeterred, the Tigers rallied to take the fourth game 30-25 and force the match into a tie-breaking fifth game. This final showdown proved dramatic — neither team ever led by more than two points, the game was tied 11 times and the lead changed seven times. Syracuse eventually prevailed, 15-13, and went on to defeat Texas Tech and win the tournament title.
In the season-opener, junior outside hitter Parker Henritze led the offense with 22 kills. She was backed up by Ensign, who managed 21 kills. Team captain and senior libero Jenny McReynolds defended the court with a team-high 28 digs.
The Tigers lost their second tournament match Saturday to Texas Tech, 3-1. The Red Raiders built a 2-0 lead, taking the opening games 30-22 and 30-27. The prospects looked bleak for Princeton as Texas Tech raced out to a 20-11 lead in the third game, but the Tigers rallied to snatch away the possibility of a shutout with a 30-27 win.
Unfortunately for the Orange and Black, the Red Raiders got their revenge, winning the last game by a close score of 30-27.
Once again, Henritze and Ensign proved to be the most productive offense players on the court, totalling 24 kills . Junior setter Bailey Robinson provided valuable aid with 52 assists.
Against Fordham on Saturday afternoon, the Tigers' efforts proved more successful. Sophomore outside hitter Sheena Donohue led the charge against the Rams, guiding the team to a hard-fought 3-2 victory.
"We were up in the fourth and we could've closed the deal, but we lost our focus," Ensign said. "But ultimately we came out with a win."
Princeton seesawed with Fordham throughout the match. The Tigers won the first and third games 30-25 and 30-15, respectively, but they dropped the second and fourth by tight two-point margins. In an intense fifth game, Princeton finally triumphed, 20-18, after Donahue served up one final ace.
Donahue closed out the match with an incredible 18 kills and 22 digs. She was given strong support by teammates Henritze and Ensign, who once again had a combined 24 kills. In her first weekend as a college varsity athlete, freshman middle blocker Elizabeth McStravick led the team with three blocks.
Ensign's consistently strong performances throughout the tournament earned her a spot on the Big Orange All-Tournament team.
Princeton finished last season with a strong 21-3 record and a second-place finish in the Ivy League standings. With all six starters from the 2006 season on the roster again this fall, prospects remain good for similar successes in 2007.
The Tigers also welcome back a couple of players who missed last season. Most significantly, McReynolds, a key player from the 2005 season, made her return to the court this weekend after she led the nation in digs in 2005 but missed every match in 2006. She has picked up exactly where she left off, garnering the highest number of digs for Princeton in every match during the tournament.
Expectations are high for this fall season.
"I'm going to be disappointed if we do anything but win [the Ivy League]," Ensign said.
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