Princeton University Athletics
Parker Dixon (left), George Huhmann (center), and Junior Oboh earned All-EIVA honors this season.
Photo by: Beverly Schaefer
Huhmann Earns EIVA Newcomer Of The Year, Leads Trio Of All-League Honorees
April 18, 2017 | Men's Volleyball
Freshman middle blocker George Huhmann became the third Princeton men's volleyball player to earn EIVA Newcomer of the Year honors over the last eight seasons, and he joined fellow middle Junior Oboh on the All-EIVA First Team this season. Freshman Parker Dixon earned Second-Team All-EIVA honors, meaning Princeton had half of the Class of 2020 honorees on the all-league teams.
Huhmann joins Pat Schwagler (2010) and Cody Kessel (2012) as EIVA Newcomers of the Year under head coach Sam Shweisky, and he did so with a terrific freshman season on both sides of the net. The two-time EIVA Defensive Player of the Week ranked third in the league with 1.04 blocks per game, although that total went up to 1.31 in conference play. He had one of the most spectacular single-match performances by a Princeton player this century, as he recorded 12 blocks in a near-upset of Penn State in State College.
Of course, Huhmann also proved to be one of the league's most effective hitters from any location. He led the EIVA with a .386 attack percentage overall, and an incredible .439 percentage in league play. For comparison's sake, no player on any other EIVA team hit within .100 points of Huhmann in league play. He averaged more than 2.0 kills a match, and his versatility allowed Shweisky to move him around on the offensive side of the court at times throughout the season.
"George is part of a special fraternity of Princeton EIVA Newcomer of the Year award recipients," Shweisky said. "If his trajectory is similar to that of Pat Schwagler and Cody Kessel before him, which I think it can be, we will be in for an exciting next few years. George significantly impacts the game with his attacking, his blocking, and his serving. The great news is that George has the capacity to improve dramatically in all three areas of his game. The sky is the limit with where George Huhmann can go and we are happy to be along for the ride."
The only player in the EIVA to hit with similar efficiency to Huhmann in league play is Oboh, who earned first-team honors for the second time in his career. Oboh hit .423 in conference play and .429 overall; he would rank fifth in the NCAA in overall attack percentage had he had five more swings throughout the season — the minimum qualifying average is 3.3 attacks per set, and he averaged 3.25. Regardless, he was among the steadiest hitters out of the middle anywhere in the nation, and he still ranked seventh in the league with .89 blocks per set. Like Huhmann, Oboh was a two-time EIVA Defensive Player of the Week.
Huhmann and Oboh are two of only four non-seniors to earn first-team honors this year. The others are Calvin Mende (Fr., OH, Penn State) and Josh Ayzenberg (Jr., L, Sacred Heart).
Dixon earned second-team honors after leading Princeton in several offensive categories this season. He ranked first on the team in kills (3.02) and points (3.40), and he was second on the team in digs (1.1). He made national attention when he became the second Tiger to win AVCA National Player of the Week honors following brilliant performances against both NJIT and George Mason, and he ended the season with 15 matches with double-digit kills.
"We are very proud of Junior, George and Parker for being selected to the 2017 All-EIVA teams," Shweisky said. "They have helped our team tremendously this year, not only by putting points on the board but also through their leadership and team-first mentality. I am very excited for them to lead us into the conference playoffs this week."
Princeton returns to the EIVA postseason for the fifth time in six years and will take on Penn State Thursday night at 7:30 pm. Check back Wednesday for a full preview of the championship weekend.
Huhmann joins Pat Schwagler (2010) and Cody Kessel (2012) as EIVA Newcomers of the Year under head coach Sam Shweisky, and he did so with a terrific freshman season on both sides of the net. The two-time EIVA Defensive Player of the Week ranked third in the league with 1.04 blocks per game, although that total went up to 1.31 in conference play. He had one of the most spectacular single-match performances by a Princeton player this century, as he recorded 12 blocks in a near-upset of Penn State in State College.
Of course, Huhmann also proved to be one of the league's most effective hitters from any location. He led the EIVA with a .386 attack percentage overall, and an incredible .439 percentage in league play. For comparison's sake, no player on any other EIVA team hit within .100 points of Huhmann in league play. He averaged more than 2.0 kills a match, and his versatility allowed Shweisky to move him around on the offensive side of the court at times throughout the season.
"George is part of a special fraternity of Princeton EIVA Newcomer of the Year award recipients," Shweisky said. "If his trajectory is similar to that of Pat Schwagler and Cody Kessel before him, which I think it can be, we will be in for an exciting next few years. George significantly impacts the game with his attacking, his blocking, and his serving. The great news is that George has the capacity to improve dramatically in all three areas of his game. The sky is the limit with where George Huhmann can go and we are happy to be along for the ride."
The only player in the EIVA to hit with similar efficiency to Huhmann in league play is Oboh, who earned first-team honors for the second time in his career. Oboh hit .423 in conference play and .429 overall; he would rank fifth in the NCAA in overall attack percentage had he had five more swings throughout the season — the minimum qualifying average is 3.3 attacks per set, and he averaged 3.25. Regardless, he was among the steadiest hitters out of the middle anywhere in the nation, and he still ranked seventh in the league with .89 blocks per set. Like Huhmann, Oboh was a two-time EIVA Defensive Player of the Week.
Huhmann and Oboh are two of only four non-seniors to earn first-team honors this year. The others are Calvin Mende (Fr., OH, Penn State) and Josh Ayzenberg (Jr., L, Sacred Heart).
Dixon earned second-team honors after leading Princeton in several offensive categories this season. He ranked first on the team in kills (3.02) and points (3.40), and he was second on the team in digs (1.1). He made national attention when he became the second Tiger to win AVCA National Player of the Week honors following brilliant performances against both NJIT and George Mason, and he ended the season with 15 matches with double-digit kills.
"We are very proud of Junior, George and Parker for being selected to the 2017 All-EIVA teams," Shweisky said. "They have helped our team tremendously this year, not only by putting points on the board but also through their leadership and team-first mentality. I am very excited for them to lead us into the conference playoffs this week."
Princeton returns to the EIVA postseason for the fifth time in six years and will take on Penn State Thursday night at 7:30 pm. Check back Wednesday for a full preview of the championship weekend.
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