Men's Volleyball Hosts Princeton Saturday Afternoon

Pictured: Gil Weintraub (photo courtesy of DSPics.com)

The Particulars
After a road contest with Rivier was postponed due to inclement weather, Harvard hosts its second consecutive home match. The Crimson faces Princeton Saturday at 4 p.m. at the Malkin Athletic Center.

Last Time Out
Harvard lost its home opener, 3-0, to Baruch Feb. 4. All three sets were closely contested, with both teams taking the lead multiple times. In the first set, Harvard fell 30-28. The Crimson opened up the second set with a 3-0 run, but Baruch fought back and neither team held more than a three point lead the rest of the set. With Harvard up, 31-30, Baruch scored three unanswered points to take the set. The third set again saw several ties and lead changes before Baruch claimed the set and the match with a 30-27 win.

In his first match of the season, Gil Weintraub posted 13 kills. Erik Kuld also added 13 kills, while Matt Jones recorded eight kills and nine digs. Rob Lothman handed out 35 assists on the night.

Scouting the Crimson
Harvard is seeking its first win, having suffered road losses to Juniata, St. Francis and Endicott and a loss to Baruch in the home opener Feb. 4.

Gil Weintraub averaged 4.33 kills per set against Baruch, his first match of the season. Erik Kuld is recording 3.73 kills per set, while Matt Jones is adding 3.33 per set. Rob Lothman is handing out 11.33 assists per set. On the defensive side, Dan Schreff leads the Crimson with 2.77 digs per set and Nicola Ivica is registering 1.13 blocks per set.

Scouting The Tigers
Princeton holds a 2-3 overall record. The Tigers opened up the season with a trip to the west coast to play California Baptist, Cal-Irvine and Cal-San Diego. Princeton returned from the trip winless, but went on to defeat NJIT and NYU.

Vincent Tuminelli paces the Tigers offense with 3.89 kills per set and Pat Schwagler follows with 3.78. Scott Liljestrom hands out 12.72 assists per set. Carl Hamming has registered 1.83 digs per set.

The Last Meeting
The teams last met on March 13, 2009, with Harvard falling to Princeton in three sets. In the first set, the score was tied at 9-9 before the Tigers scored nine unanswered points to take control. They eventually won the opening set, 30-22. After falling behind 19-12 in the second set, the Crimson went on a 9-0 run to take the lead at 21-19. The teams traded points until Princeton won, 33-31. In the third set, the Crimson never gained momentum and lost 30-20.

On the Bench
Head coach Brian Baise, a 1995 graduate of  Princeton, is in his second season at Harvard. He brings an 11-12 overall record into today’s match.