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Friday, September 2
San Francisco, Calif.
4:30 PM PT
Princeton University
vs
Campbell
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/L
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/L
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/RS
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/RS
/ Women's Volleyball
RS
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
MB/S
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
RS
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's VolleyballThe Ivy League champion Princeton women's volleyball team opens its 2016 season Friday at the San Francisco Invitational.
Photo by: Beverly Schaefer
Following Unprecedented 2015 Title Run, Tiger Volleyball Heads West With Optimism, Focus (VIDEO)
August 30, 2016 | Women's Volleyball
WEEKEND LIVE STATS: Campbell l San Francisco l Indiana
Three matches into its Ivy League season, the Princeton women's volleyball team was trying to figure out what was happening.
Seven matches in, the Tigers were proud of their resilience, and ready to bring a little excitement to an interesting league race.
Fourteen matches in, they were Ivy League champions.
Yes, the 2015 season was a memorable one for the Princeton women's volleyball team. But that's all it is right now — a memory. The 2016 season begins this weekend in a most unique spot; for the first time in program history, the Tigers will be playing a regular season tournament in California. Princeton, which has nine players from the Golden State, will take on Campbell, San Francisco and Indiana during the season-opening San Francisco Invitational.
No Princeton volleyball team has ever flown to California for a regular season tournament. Of course, no Ivy League team — any sport, any gender — ever opened a league season 0-3 and still managed to win an Ivy championship. So these women don't mind being trendsetters.
Princeton understands that the magic it created over the final month of its season won't automatically return to the court this weekend. Instead, the Tigers have spent the first two weeks of preseason combining the focus of finding that chemistry with the confidence of knowing what they can produce when the chemistry is found. Certain key pieces will need to be replaced (Kendall Peterkin and her 1200+ kills, as well as four-year starting libero Sarah Daschbach), but there are also several crucial players returning to the court, and others ready to make their presence felt on a more consistent basis.
Leading the charge is co-captain Cara Mattaliano, the 2015 Ivy League Player of the Year. Mattaliano was spectacular last season, producing career highs in kills, hitting percentage, and points, and she became the go-to hitter when Princeton was playing its best volleyball of the season. While her on-court play is vital — she was Top 10 in the Ivy League in digs and posted a career high in blocks last season — she is also a fiery, vocal leader on the court.
Head coach Sabrina King, once an Ivy League Player of the Year for an Ivy-champion Princeton team, will use the first three regular season tournaments to see the best fit for the second outside position. Kelly Matthews is the most experienced option and one of the top defensive players on the team, while both Brooke Hershberger and Mary Claire Bartlett can build off more limited match time early in their careers.
Two freshmen could also factor in, including Devon Peterkin, the younger sister of three-time All-Ivy honoree Kendall Peterkin. Both Devon and classmate Natasha Skov will get their chances to show their explosiveness starting this weekend in San Francisco, as well as in tournaments at Georgetown and Rutgers.
Senior co-captain Brittany Ptak was a second-team All-Ivy League honoree last season, and she leads a deep set of middles for Princeton. Ptak may not have the size of her Tiger position mates, but she has been a reliable hitter (.329 and .336 over the last two years) and a solid defender. Sophomore Nnenna Ibe took the second middle spot during her freshman season and quickly became the team's best defender at the net. She blocked nearly 1.0 swings per set, and she has shown even greater comfort on the offensive end this preseason.
Freshman Maggie O'Connell earned PrepVolleyball All-American Highest Honorable Mention after a brilliant senior season at Seven Lakes High, and she will certainly compete for time in the middle. Caroline Sklaver — who spent much of her freshman season injured, but has looked strong in the preseason — and Alex Thompson could also factor into the middle rotation.
The rightside position has belonged to the elder Peterkin for the better part of four years, and it is a spot that King will likely test out with multiple Tigers throughout September. Sophomore Brittany Smith had an 11-kill match in a 3-2 win at Brown that helped keep the Tigers' championship hopes alive, and the rightside position is her most natural spot. Several of the potential outsides could also move to the right side as well.
Sophomore Claire Nussbaum had a huge impact on the championship race when she took over the starting role during the Ivy season, and she impressed the league coaches enough to earn second-team All-Ivy honors. King has liked the way she has run the offense this preseason, and she thinks the experience from last year will give her a strong jump on the 2016 season. Senior Lauren Miller has two years of starting experience as well, which both adds to the competition at the spot and gives King strong depth at such a key position. Freshman Jessica Harris has shown flashes during the preseason, and King is excited to see what she can do as she gets more comfortable with the offense.
Junior Maddie Huber found limited time at the libero spot during Daschbach's final two seasons, but when she was on the court, she played with confidence and energy. She is vying for the starting position this year, though Matthews could also see time there.
Three matches into its Ivy League season, the Princeton women's volleyball team was trying to figure out what was happening.
Seven matches in, the Tigers were proud of their resilience, and ready to bring a little excitement to an interesting league race.
Fourteen matches in, they were Ivy League champions.
Yes, the 2015 season was a memorable one for the Princeton women's volleyball team. But that's all it is right now — a memory. The 2016 season begins this weekend in a most unique spot; for the first time in program history, the Tigers will be playing a regular season tournament in California. Princeton, which has nine players from the Golden State, will take on Campbell, San Francisco and Indiana during the season-opening San Francisco Invitational.
No Princeton volleyball team has ever flown to California for a regular season tournament. Of course, no Ivy League team — any sport, any gender — ever opened a league season 0-3 and still managed to win an Ivy championship. So these women don't mind being trendsetters.
Princeton understands that the magic it created over the final month of its season won't automatically return to the court this weekend. Instead, the Tigers have spent the first two weeks of preseason combining the focus of finding that chemistry with the confidence of knowing what they can produce when the chemistry is found. Certain key pieces will need to be replaced (Kendall Peterkin and her 1200+ kills, as well as four-year starting libero Sarah Daschbach), but there are also several crucial players returning to the court, and others ready to make their presence felt on a more consistent basis.
Leading the charge is co-captain Cara Mattaliano, the 2015 Ivy League Player of the Year. Mattaliano was spectacular last season, producing career highs in kills, hitting percentage, and points, and she became the go-to hitter when Princeton was playing its best volleyball of the season. While her on-court play is vital — she was Top 10 in the Ivy League in digs and posted a career high in blocks last season — she is also a fiery, vocal leader on the court.
Head coach Sabrina King, once an Ivy League Player of the Year for an Ivy-champion Princeton team, will use the first three regular season tournaments to see the best fit for the second outside position. Kelly Matthews is the most experienced option and one of the top defensive players on the team, while both Brooke Hershberger and Mary Claire Bartlett can build off more limited match time early in their careers.
Two freshmen could also factor in, including Devon Peterkin, the younger sister of three-time All-Ivy honoree Kendall Peterkin. Both Devon and classmate Natasha Skov will get their chances to show their explosiveness starting this weekend in San Francisco, as well as in tournaments at Georgetown and Rutgers.
Senior co-captain Brittany Ptak was a second-team All-Ivy League honoree last season, and she leads a deep set of middles for Princeton. Ptak may not have the size of her Tiger position mates, but she has been a reliable hitter (.329 and .336 over the last two years) and a solid defender. Sophomore Nnenna Ibe took the second middle spot during her freshman season and quickly became the team's best defender at the net. She blocked nearly 1.0 swings per set, and she has shown even greater comfort on the offensive end this preseason.
Freshman Maggie O'Connell earned PrepVolleyball All-American Highest Honorable Mention after a brilliant senior season at Seven Lakes High, and she will certainly compete for time in the middle. Caroline Sklaver — who spent much of her freshman season injured, but has looked strong in the preseason — and Alex Thompson could also factor into the middle rotation.
The rightside position has belonged to the elder Peterkin for the better part of four years, and it is a spot that King will likely test out with multiple Tigers throughout September. Sophomore Brittany Smith had an 11-kill match in a 3-2 win at Brown that helped keep the Tigers' championship hopes alive, and the rightside position is her most natural spot. Several of the potential outsides could also move to the right side as well.
Sophomore Claire Nussbaum had a huge impact on the championship race when she took over the starting role during the Ivy season, and she impressed the league coaches enough to earn second-team All-Ivy honors. King has liked the way she has run the offense this preseason, and she thinks the experience from last year will give her a strong jump on the 2016 season. Senior Lauren Miller has two years of starting experience as well, which both adds to the competition at the spot and gives King strong depth at such a key position. Freshman Jessica Harris has shown flashes during the preseason, and King is excited to see what she can do as she gets more comfortable with the offense.
Junior Maddie Huber found limited time at the libero spot during Daschbach's final two seasons, but when she was on the court, she played with confidence and energy. She is vying for the starting position this year, though Matthews could also see time there.
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