Men's Volleyball: Princeton defeats George Mason 3-1 to end regular season with bang

Princeton demonstrated mental toughness that it had only shown glimpses of prior to Friday evening’s matchup. After winning the first game, the Tigers did not drop their level of play, and after losing the third game controversially, the visitors emphatically won the fourth and deciding game.

With Princeton leading 25-22 in the third game, junior middle blocker Jeff McCown was judged to have committed an error. In the ensuing uproar, the Princeton bench was given a yellow card and another point was awarded to George Mason. The effective three-point swing gave momentum to the hosts, who won the game’s final five points to get back in the match.

“I think our bench’s reaction was justified,” junior rightside hitter Carl Hamming said. “The ref even gave us an obvious makeup call a few points later.”

The Tigers channeled their anger effectively in the fourth game, winning six straight points for a 9-4 lead they never relinquished. The Patriots couldn’t close the gap past four, and Princeton at one point led by nine.

“We came out really strong in the fourth game,” Hamming said. “We were kind of mad about how the last game finished, and we wanted to finish the match off and not go to a fifth game. So we came out firing and controlled the game early.”

Despite the controversial officiating, Princeton played a complete match from start to finish. The team passed well, giving itself many one-on-one attack opportunities that were easily converted into kills.

“When you pass well, it is really easy to side out,” Hamming said. “[Senior setter and captain] Brandon [Denham] played a good game, and we were just very efficient in converting our opportunities.”

Princeton hit .372 for the match, including a blistering .537 in the opening frame and .448 in the deciding fourth game. McCown led the Tigers with 19 kills, while Hamming and senior middle blocker Mike Vincent had 18 apiece.

Princeton’s outside hitters, senior Phil Rosenberg and sophomore Vincent Tuminelli, killed 15 and 11, respectively, and Denham led all participants in assists with 73.

The first game was close, with George Mason leading late at 23-22, but the Tigers won eight of the last 11 points for a comfortable win. The second game was similarly close — 18 ties and six lead changes — but Princeton maintained a narrow lead until the end.

Service errors may still be a point of concern with the Tigers, who gave 16 such free points to Mason while only notching two aces. Princeton must be pleased with its defense, as Hamming, Tuminelli and senior libero Ka’ohu Berg-Hee each picked up double-digit digs.

George Mason clinched the fifth seed in the EIVA with its Saturday defeat of NJIT — NJIT finished the EIVA season a Detroit Lions-like 0-12 — while Rutgers-Newark’s victory over Harvard in the Hay Division finale means that the Crimson will travel to George Mason and the Scarlet Raiders will travel to Princeton for the opening round of the EIVA tournament.

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Princeton defeated Rutgers earlier this season 3-1 at Dillon Gymnasium, but the Tigers will not take their first-round matchup lightly.

“I’m sure they’ve picked up the level of their play,” Hamming said. “We have to be ready for a fired up team, one that’s looking for a little revenge.”

In the teams’ last match, the Scarlet Raiders took the first game 35-33, but Princeton responded with three comfortable wins for the overall match victory. The rematch is Wednesday at Dillon at 7 p.m.