Princeton draws Delaware

There was nothing but excitement in the air as 8:00 p.m. came and went this past Sunday evening. After clinching the first perfect 14-0 Ivy League season in conference history, the women's volleyball team (22-3 overall) took the announcement of its NCAA Tournament draw — which opens with a first-round match against Delaware (30-4) on Friday night — with hope and readiness.

It was a long two weeks of waiting since the Tigers finished their championship season, but the team stayed positive and focused, patiently waiting for its Sunday night tournament announcement.

"It's a little bit frustrating not knowing [the NCAA announcement], but it also builds up the excitement," junior outside hitter Parker Henritze said. "It gave us time to enjoy the regular season, and now be able to refocus for the NCAA."

Sunday night was a historic moment for Princeton volleyball, as the team joined the select few who have had the opportunity to represent the Tigers in the NCAA Tournament. Never before has a Princeton volleyball team moved past the first round of the tournament, and this year's Tiger squad is only the fourth in the University's history to compete in the national tournament.

"I think we're all pretty excited, and we're also pretty hopeful. We're hoping to go off the momentum that we gained off the Ivy League, and use that to help us through the first couple of rounds," junior outside hitter Jessica Hoffmann said.

A couple of hours before receiving their announcement, the Tigers were buzzing with excitement, as many got together to see the broadcast live on ESPNU.

"I don't think we're scared or nervous," Henritze said. "We have nothing to lose, and we have a lot of momentum coming into the tournament and we just want to continue that coming into the weekend."

The Tigers come into the tournament with a 20-match winning streak, the longest in Princeton volleyball history. Their last loss was Sept. 14 against Liberty at the Villanova tournament, where Princeton would later defeat Villanova, a team which has defeated Delaware during season play this year.

With a 20-match streak on the line, the Tigers have the chance to make even more history if they can push through their first-round match Friday night.

"Our goal, especially for the first round, is for all of us to come together and play our best match as a team," Henritze said. "I think we all can play better than we've played so far, especially if we all have a good game at the same time."

After the tournament announcement, the Tigers discussed the pairing and obtained some perspective for the weekend to come.

"It was a really good first-round pick for us, and it's a winnable pairing, with their strength on par with ours," Henritze said. "We don't have [to] fundamentally change anything this week ... [we just need to] get ready to play our best volleyball, and hopefully that'll be good enough."

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Check out Friday's Daily Princetonian for an extensive first-round preview as the Tigers travel to St. John's in Queens, N.Y., for their first-round match against Delaware.