Princeton undone in EIVA quarterfinals

The men’s volleyball team was supposed to go to the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) Championship game and maybe even to the NCAA tournament. Instead, it did not make it past the quarterfinals. After taking a 2-0 lead and appearing to have the match in hand during the fourth game, Princeton fell in heartbreaking fashion when NJIT rallied and ended the Tigers’ season, 3-2. Princeton, stunned and in disbelief, sat on its bench watching the Highlanders celebrate on its own court.

“We couldn’t close it out,” junior outside hitter Phil Rosenberg said.

The fourth game was the deciding factor in the match. Princeton was up 2-1 in games and appeared to have found its stride again after looking out of sync in the third game. Led by outside hitters junior Mike Vincent and sophomore Carl Hamming, the Tigers first took a 22-19 lead and then extended that lead to 25-20. But they could not seal the deal. NJIT took a timeout to regroup and then took three points in a row to make the score 25-23 Princeton. The Tigers took a timeout of their own and then pushed to score to 27-25, but the Highlanders, aided by a questionable call from the referees, tied the game at 27. NJIT would win the fourth game 30-28 and shift the momentum clearly in its favor.

Compared to the fourth game, the fifth game was almost an afterthought. Princeton looked lifeless and dry after blowing the fourth game, and the Highlanders pounced and won easily, 15-9. A large contingent of NJIT students made the trip down and negated whatever home-court advantage the Tigers might have had. During the fifth game, Princeton played as if it had already lost.

What made the loss even more surprising was the contrast between Princeton’s play in the first and second games and its play in the later games. During the first game, the Tigers took an early 10-5 lead and did not look back. Keyed by senior outside hitter and captain Peter Eichler, Princeton won easily, 30-23. This silenced the large NJIT crowd and seemed to set a tone for the match.

The second game was close early, with the score tying at both nine and 15, but the Tigers did not let up. With a great block from junior setter Brandon Denham, Princeton took a 25-20 lead, and an Eichler kill a few points later made the score 27-22. The Tigers would go on to win the second game easily, 30-24.

But the team that looked so good during the first two games would not return to the court.

Coming off dominant wins in the first two games, the Tigers looked to be going for the sweep, but NJIT’s server got hot at the right time. The Highlanders got off to a quick 7-0 start, and in modern volleyball, that size lead is nearly insurmountable.

“We started off slow,” Rosenberg said. “They had a hot jump server.”

NJIT would easily win the third game 30-20, reenergizing its fans and team. The old adage about wounded bears being dangerous definitely applies: The Highlanders were down but certainly not out.

“We lost energy … it was unfortunate,” Rosenberg said.

After the loss, Princeton came out fighting once again and took control of the game. NJIT’s energy, however, was too much for the Tigers to handle, and the Highlanders took both games. They go on to the EIVA semifinals to face No. 2-seeded George Mason.

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Princeton must now look forward to next year, as the team will only lose two seniors to graduation. Unfortunately for the Tigers, one of those seniors is Eichler, who led the team in kills this year with 296. After the game, Eichler could be seen consoling his teammates, telling them that they would do better next year.

Rosenberg agrees.

“We’ll be real strong again next year,” Rosenberg said.